Europe joins growing list of nations preparing to oppose Trump tariffs

The European Union is open to negotiate looming trade tariffs with the United States Trump administration but is willing to retaliate with strong countermeasures if required, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says.

Ms von der Leyen told a meeting of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Tuesday that its 27 member states do not agree with the 25 per cent tariffs already announced by US President Donald Trump on steel, aluminium, cars and car parts produced in Europe.

"Let me be clear, Europe did not start this confrontation. We think it is wrong, but my message to you today is that we have everything we need to protect our people and our prosperity," she said.

"We have the largest single market in the world, we have the strength to negotiate, we have the power to push back and the people of Europe should know that together we will always promote and defend our interests and our values and together we will always stand up for our Europe.

"We are open to negotiations. We will approach these negotiations from a position of strength … Our objective is a negotiated solution, but of course if need be we will protect our interests, our people and our companies.

Ms von der Leyen's address comes ahead of Mr Trump delivering a "Liberation Day" address in the US that is expected to include a raft of newly-announced reciprocal tariffs against multiple countries.

The US president's aggressive tariffs strategy is fuelling fears of a global trade war, risking a chain reaction of retaliation by major trading partners like China, Canada and the European Union.

The European Commission is the EU’s executive branch, negotiates trade deals on behalf of the bloc’s 27 member countries, and manages trade disputes on their behalf.

“Europe holds a lot of cards, from trade to technology to the size of our market. But this strength is also built on our readiness to take firm counter measures if necessary," Ms von der Leyen said in her address.

"All instruments are on the table."

The commission already intends to impose duties on US goods worth some $US28 billion ($44.7b) in mid-April in response to Mr Trump's steel and aluminium tariffs. The EU duties will target steel and aluminium products, but also textiles, home appliances and farm goods.

A lot remains unknown about how Mr Trump's levies will actually be implemented, notably the "reciprocal" tariffs, and the EU wants to assess their impact before taking retaliatory action.

"So many Europeans feel utterly disheartened by the announcement from the United States," Ms von der Leyen said. 

"This is the largest and most prosperous trade relationship worldwide. We would all be better off if we could find a constructive solution."

Japan, South Korea and China set to respond

The EU is not the only bloc of nations set to band together in opposition to any announcement from the White House of further international trade tariffs.

China, Japan and South Korea have also agreed to jointly respond to fresh tariffs, according a social media account affiliated with Chinese state media.

Authorities in Seoul, however, labelled the assertion as "somewhat exaggerated", while Tokyo said there was no such discussion.

The state media comments came after the three countries held their first economic dialogue in five years on Sunday, seeking to facilitate regional trade as the Asian export powers brace against Mr Trump's tariffs.

Japan and South Korea are seeking to import semiconductor raw materials from China, and China is also interested in purchasing chip products from Japan and South Korea, the account — Yuyuan Tantian — linked to China Central Television, said in a post on Weibo.

All three sides agreed to strengthen supply chain cooperation and engage in more dialogue on export controls, the post said.

When asked about the report, a spokesperson for South Korea's trade ministry said "the suggestion that there was a joint response to US tariffs appears to have been somewhat exaggerated," and referred to the text of the countries' joint statement.

Japan's Trade Minister Yoji Muto, when asked about it at a press conference on Tuesday, said there was a meeting of trade ministers at the weekend but there were no such discussions.

During Sunday's meeting, the countries' trade ministers agreed to speed up talks on a South Korea-Japan-China free trade agreement deal to promote "regional and global trade", according to a statement released after the meeting.

Separately in Asia, Taiwan also revealed on Tuesday that it has drawn up its own plans to help its local industries survive any looming US-announced tariffs.

Taiwan's trade surplus with the US is the seventh highest of any country, reaching $US73.9 billion ($118.1b) in 2024.

"Our countermeasures have been assessed and analysed, for example, how we would respond to a 10 per cent or how we would respond to a 25 per cent tariff," Minister of Economic Affairs Kuo Jyh-huei told reporters.

"All scenarios have been analysed and evaluated to identify suitable responses and determine how best to assist domestic industries in managing the impact.

Taiwan — a powerhouse in semiconductor chip manufacturing — has pledged to increase investment in the US in a bid to head off tariffs.

UK 'hopeful US tariffs will be reversed'

The United Kingdom's Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds also joined the growing list of international representatives voicing opposition to the prospect of looming US tariffs.

Mr Reynolds said on Tuesday that Britain was still hopeful that any tariffs would be reversed shortly, if the UK and US can agree on the outline of a new economic partnership.

The UK had sought to avoid Mr Trump's tariff plan by offering to more closely align with Washington on areas such as technology and artificial intelligence. 

Mr Reynolds said Mr Trump now appeared to want to impose levies on every country before discussing individual exemptions, and said he hoped those levies would be removed once the two sides agreed terms.

"I believe that the framework of an agreement is certainly in place," he told the BBC. 

"We could sign heads of terms on that, and then talk about the detail over a specific timescale that would be to the US's satisfaction going forward.

"Whether the US is willing to come to agreement with countries is a decision for the US, but I believe the work we have done has made that possible."

Prime Minister Keir Starmer also described those talks as "well advanced".

Wires