EU not offering fair trade deal, Japan being ‘tough’ too, says Trump
Reuters :
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said Japan was being “tough” in trade talks and the European Union had not yet offered what he considered a fair deal, as a team led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stayed at the G7 meeting in Canada to keep working on trade issues after Trump’s abrupt early departure.
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that the EU would need to offer Washington “a good deal” or face higher tariffs.
Trump spoke after leaving the Group of Seven summit early to focus on the Middle East, disappointing trading partners who had hoped to make progress on thorny trade talks. He told reporters Bessent was staying on in Kananaskis, Alberta, to keep talking with counterparts on trade.
White House officials said US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett also remained in Canada and would be meeting their counterparts. They said Trump met informally with all G7 members, but had not seen the leaders of India, Australia or Mexico, who were also slated to meet him in Canada this week.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum tweeted later in the day that she had a “very good” phone call with Trump on Tuesday and they agreed to work together to reach a deal on “diverse topics.” The White House later confirmed the call.
“We’re talking, but I don’t feel that they’re offering a fair deal yet,” Trump told reporters, referring to the European Union. “They’re either going to make a good deal or they’ll just pay whatever we say they have to pay.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters on the sidelines of the G7 summit that the objective was still to reach a deal before higher reciprocal tariffs go into effect on July 9 after a 90-day pause. “It’s complex but we are advancing, that is good, and I push hard to pick up more speed, so we are mixed in the negotiations, and we will see what the end brings,” she said.
Greta Peisch, a trade lawyer at Wiley Rein in Washington, said Trump’s departure was disappointing for trading partners since he was leading trade policy and it was sometimes unclear what tradeoffs he was willing to make.
“If they don’t have a clear view of what that is … that can obviously slow things down and make it more difficult to conclude the negotiations,” she said.