Biden Emphasizes Alliances... Trump Imposes Additional Tariffs on Germany, France, and Other European Countries

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] The Donald Trump administration in the United States announced on the 30th (local time) that it will impose additional tariffs on German and French wines, aircraft parts, and other products.

According to Bloomberg News and others, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) stated in a press release that these tariffs will be applied soon. The USTR explained that this tariff measure is a retaliatory action against the European Union (EU) for not accepting the U.S. demand to correct the unfair standards applied when the EU imposed tariffs on American products.

The EU and the U.S. have clashed for 16 years over subsidies related to Airbus, Europe's largest aircraft manufacturer, and Boeing, the representative American aircraft manufacturer, with tensions intensifying since the Trump administration took office.

In October last year, the World Trade Organization (WTO) recognized that the EU had illegally subsidized Airbus and ruled that the U.S. could impose retaliatory tariffs. The U.S. then imposed tariffs on EU products worth $7.5 billion (approximately 8.13 trillion KRW), including wine and whiskey. In response, the EU imposed retaliatory tariffs worth $4 billion on American products, including Boeing aircraft.

Bloomberg pointed out that the tariff imposition came just before President Trump’s term ended, especially as President-elect Joe Biden and his aides are signaling a desire to improve relations with the EU and other allies. The targeted items also include French Cognac and German grape brandy.

Bloomberg forecasted, "This measure could exacerbate the suffering of the aviation industry, which has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and may increase concerns about a 'double-dip' recession in both the EU and the U.S."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.