French president says the door is open for negotiations, but Europe must still be ready to defend itself.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s move to suspend his most punishing tariffs for 90 days offers only a “fragile » pause in tensions — but a vital opportunity for negotiations.
« The partial suspension of American tariffs for 90 days sends out a signal and leaves the door open for talks. But this pause is a fragile one, » Macron said.
« Fragile, because the 25 percent tariffs on steel, aluminum and automobiles and the 10 percent tariffs on all other products are still in place. They represent €52 billion for the European Union! Fragile, because this 90-day pause means 90 days of uncertainty for all our businesses, on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond, » he added.
Trump announced Wednesday a 90-day pause on the most severe new « reciprocal » tariffs — up to 50 percent — he had imposed a week earlier on nearly all countries, plus the European Union. But a strict 10 percent tariff regime remains in place for much of the world, continuing to roil financial markets, while Trump continues to go after China with punitive 145 percent tariffs.
In response to Trump’s climbdown, the European Commission said Thursday it would also suspend for 90 days its countermeasures against the U.S.
According to the French president, Europe must stay united and continue to mobilize every available tool to defend itself and assert its economic sovereignty.
“We are right to fight: jobs and the lives of our communities are at stake,” Macron said.
