President of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von Der Leyen advocates a compromise in a customs dispute agreed by the European Union (EU) with US President Donald Trump. Agreement means “stability and predictability instead of escalation and confrontation”, she wrote in a post that Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) on Monday.
“Let’s imagine for a moment that the two greatest economies of the democratic world would not agree and start a commercial war. They would only celebrate in Moscow and Beijing,” led Leyen. She has described an agreement that counts on a US cloud of 15 % on the majority of EU imports as a good, though not perfect. “With reciprocal duties on our side, we would risk the outbreak of the costly commercial war with the negative consequences for our employees, consumers and our industry,” she wrote.
According to critics, the Commission’s negotiating strategy has led to an agreement that provides the United States better conditions than those that apply to EU companies. The Commission also agreed to the agreement under the pressure of concern that the United States will fulfill its threats, and in the case of collapse, the negotiations will introduce a 30 % CLO with effect from 1 August.
