'Europe's ability to defend its interests, already questionable, is now seriously in doubt'
However, beyond the heated debate in France, which is known neither for its subtlety nor its benevolence toward the EU or the US, any definitive judgment seems premature.
First of all, what do we actually know? As with all trade agreements from the Trump administration – fond of dramatic announcements – we can, for now, only rely on the words of the leaders. For details, we must wait for the publication of a jointly approved text, something this administration no longer guarantees. Incidentally, this will likely only be a political agreement on unilateral actions by each partner, not a trade agreement in the strict sense of the term. So it will not be subject to the usual approval and enforcement mechanisms.
Scope still to be defined
The main element of the agreement is that Europeans will accept 15% tariffs on all of their €532 billion in exports to the US in 2024, relinquishing retaliatory measures that this blatant breach of international law would have allowed them to take. That tariff rate will be the one currently applied, not an increase as in the case of the United Kingdom (+10%).
While this may seem modest compared to the average pre-Trump tariff rate of about 3.5%, many sensitive products already faced tariffs between 5% and 15%, especially in the agricultural sector, which lessens the scale of the EU's concessions. Furthermore, vehicles, which have faced 27.5% tariffs since April, would, in practice, see a specific reduction for EU-made products.
Exemptions also apply. Under a zero-for-zero framework, the entire aerospace and minerals sectors, as well as "certain" chemical, pharmaceutical, agricultural (including spirits) and semiconductor products would see their tariffs lifted. Depending on the final scope, which remains to be defined, this would affect 10% to 20% of EU exports to the US.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
36 minutes ago
- LeMonde
Ukrainian drone attack sets Russian oil depot on fire as Zelensky announces prisoner exchange
An overnight Ukrainian drone attack on an oil depot near Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi sparked a major fire, Russian officials said on Sunday, August 3, as the two countries traded strikes and the Ukrainian president announced a prisoner exchange. More than 120 firefighters attempted to extinguish the blaze, which was caused by debris from a downed drone striking a fuel tank, Krasnodar regional Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said on Telegram. Videos on social media appeared to show huge pillars of smoke billowing above the oil depot. Russia's civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, temporarily stopped flights at Sochi's airport. Farther North, authorities in the Voronezh region reported that four people were wounded in another Ukrainian drone strike. Russia's Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 93 Ukrainian drones over Russia and the Black Sea overnight into Sunday. Meanwhile, in southern Ukraine, a Russian missile strike hit a residential area in the city of Mykolaiv, according to the State Emergency Services, wounding seven people. The Ukrainian air force said Sunday Russia launched 76 drones and seven missiles against Ukraine. It said 60 drones and one missile were intercepted, but 16 others and six missiles hit targets across eight locations. The reciprocal attacks came at the end of one of the deadliest weeks in Ukraine in recent months, after a Russian drone and missile attack on Thursday killed 31 people, including five children, and wounded over 150. The continued attacks come after US President Donald Trump last week gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a shorter deadline − August 8 − for peace efforts to make progress. Trump has threatened to impose new economic sanctions on Russia if progress is not made, while expressing doubt about how effective they would be. "You know, they're wily characters, and they're pretty good at avoiding sanctions, so we'll see what happens," Trump said Sunday evening of the Russians. He said his special envoy Steve Witkoff may travel to Russia on Wednesday or Thursday, the final days before his new deadline. Help us improve Le Monde in English Dear reader, We'd love to hear your thoughts on Le Monde in English! Take this quick survey to help us improve it for you. Take the survey Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to exchange 1,200 prisoners following their latest round of negotiations in Istanbul in July. "There is an agreement to exchange 1,200 people," he wrote on X, saying that the lists of individuals to be swapped were being worked on and that they were working to "unblock the return of our civilians." There was no immediate comment from Russia. Zelensky also said he discussed with top Ukrainian officials "the negotiation track − specifically, the implementation of the agreements reached during the meetings with the Russian side in Istanbul, as well as preparations for a new meeting." Each of the three rounds of talks between the countries this year has resulted in prisoner exchanges but yielded no breakthrough in reaching a ceasefire.
Euronews
4 hours ago
- Euronews
Russian missile and drone strikes injure at least 18 across Ukraine
Russian missile and drone strikes against Ukraine continued overnight on Sunday, destroying homes and injuring at least 18 people in several cities across the country. According to Ukraine's air force, 60 Russian drones and one missile were intercepted overnight Sunday, but 16 drones and six missiles struck targets across eight locations. In Mykolaiv, the State Emergency Services reported at least seven injured following Russian missile strikes on residential areas. Authorities in Kharkiv region said 11 people were wounded in strikes on Ukraine's second-largest city. The overnight Russian attacks followed Saturday strikes that killed at least seven people and injured over 20 in Donetsk and Kherson oblasts. Earlier in the week, a Thursday missile attack killed 31 people including five children in Kyiv, injuring 150 others. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces conducted drone strikes across the border in Russia, hitting an oil depot near Sochi where debris from a downed drone ignited a fuel tank. Sochi Mayor Andrei Proshunin reported no casualties as more than 120 firefighters battled the blaze that temporarily closed the city's airport. Videos shared on Telegram showed massive smoke pillars rising from the burning depot, while debris also struck a nearby garage. Russian officials reported three people killed by Ukrainian drone attacks overnight into Saturday. Russia's Defence Ministry claimed its air defences shot down 93 Ukrainian drones over Russia and the Black Sea. These claims could not be independently verified. Ukrainian authorities said the attacks targeted Russian energy and defence sector sites. Russia's escalating attacks mark the deadliest week in Ukraine in recent months, with fighting intensifying amid stalled peace talks and a breakdown between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Last week, Trump shortened the deadline he gave Putin to 8 August for peace efforts to make progress. On Thursday, Trump said that special envoy Steve Witkoff will be heading to Russia to push Moscow to agree to a ceasefire in its all-out war in Ukraine and has threatened new economic sanctions if progress is not made. But the date and other details of the trip have not been announced yet.
France 24
5 hours ago
- France 24
Bolsonaro backers rally to praise Trump for Brazil pressure
Bolsonaro is currently being tried in the capital Brasilia for plotting a coup after failing to win reelection in 2022 against leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. "I am here to defend our people against censorship and judges who act arbitrarily," Valdeciria Galvao, a stenographer attending a rally in Brasilia, told AFP. Most of the demonstrators were dressed in green and yellow, the national colors of Brazil and Bolsonaro's party, while some held US flags or signs reading "Thank you Trump." Rallies were organized in several cities including Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Bolsonaro, 70, was unable to participate as he has been court-ordered to stay home on evenings and weekends, and not to use social media, as his trial plays out. Accused of conspiring to remain in power despite his electoral defeat by Lula, he faces a heavy prison sentence in the trial, which is expected to be concluded in the coming weeks. On Wednesday, the US Treasury Department imposed financial sanctions on Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who is presiding over the trial and is despised by Bolsonaro supporters for his fight against disinformation, which they say amounts to censorship. That same day Trump, who has branded the trial a "witch hunt," slapped cumulative 50 percent tariffs on several Brazilian imports as he wielded US economic might to punish the country. The tariffs are set to take effect on August 6. "I agree 100 percent" with the sanctions, said Maristela dos Santos on Copacabana Beach, where Sunday's rally in Rio de Janeiro was taking place. "Since no solution was found here, it had to come from elsewhere." Wearing an American flag on her shoulders, the 62-year-old teacher said she is not particularly concerned about the economic impact of the levies announced by Washington. "What worries me is that Brazil will become like Venezuela and we won't be able to find anything to eat in the supermarket," she argued, alluding to the serious shortages under Nicolas Maduro's socialist regime in Caracas. Paulo Roberto, a 46-year-old entrepreneur, echoed the sentiment, believing punitive customs duties are a necessary evil. "Unfortunately you have to take a few steps back in order to aspire to greater freedom and a better quality of life in the future," Roberto said.
