Donald Trump has said he will ratchet up tariffs on the EU, accusing it of shirking the terms of its trade deal with the US.
On Friday, the US President declared he would raise levies on imported European cars and trucks from 15% to 25%.
Brussels criticised the move, with a top official saying it illustrated how “unreliable” the US had become.
Trump announced his action a day after dropping tariffs on Scottish whisky, in what was seen as a diplomatic and economic success stemming from the King’s state visit.
“Based on the fact the European Union is not complying with our fully agreed to trade deal, next week I will be increasing tariffs charged to the European Union for cars and trucks coming into the United States,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“The Tariff will be increased to 25 per cent.”
The US-EU pact, which was struck in last year’s northern summer, had capped the American tariff on European cars and trucks at 15%.
In an attempt to lure European manufacturers to the US, Trump continued: “It is fully understood and agreed that, if they produce cars and trucks in USA plants, there will be NO TARIFF”.
Bernd Lange, the European Parliament’s trade committee chair, denounced Trump’s tariff increase.
“This latest move demonstrates just how unreliable the US side is,” Lange said. “This is no way to treat close partners. Now we can only respond with the utmost clarity and firmness, drawing on the strength of our position.”
Trump’s relationship with Europe has fractured since the start of the war with Iran, and he has frequently criticised allies whom he claims are abandoning the US.
“Italy has not been of any help to us, and Spain has been horrible. Absolutely horrible,” he said on Thursday.
A day earlier, amid rising tensions with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the US President suggested he could pull American troops out of Germany.
The President’s declaration is an example of what Government ministers have referred to as a “Brexit dividend”, which has seen Britain exempted from harsher tariffs directed at the EU.