US President Donald Trump is threatening the EU with 25 percent import tariffs. The tariffs would apply at least to cars. Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) said that the news is unfortunate, but not surprising.
"It was expected that at some point he would start playing with trade policy, but that means that the EU must enter the negotiations decisively, with good self-confidence," the PM said on Thursday.
Orpo noted that the EU is one of the United States’ most important trading partners, if not the most important. The union is also ready to respond with countermeasures that the EU Commission is preparing, he said.
Orpo declined to specify what kind of countermeasures would be involved.
"A trade war makes no sense. Neither the US nor the EU would benefit from it. In this economic situation, Finland does not need a trade war. It would be a very bad decision, and therefore a solution without tariffs must be found," the premier said.
Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen (NCP) sought to calm the situation.
"There is no question of a trade war yet, but it certainly sounds worrying," she said. "There is no need for any additional barriers to trade. On the contrary, it would be beneficial to boost transatlantic trade, and that’s the message we have been communicating so far."
Valtonen said that import duties of over 20 percent are high, but expressed hopes for restraint.
"Nothing has been decided yet, and negotiations are only just beginning. Looking at how the stock market has reacted to Trump's messages, he certainly knows how to read that language," she added.
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