We could think about postponing them to April 30, but we certainly don’t oppose them: Italian foreign minister on counter-tariff

The European Union (EU) received a suggestion on Monday from the Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani that the supranational political and economic union of 27 members might want to contemplate delaying counter-tariffs announcement on US imports of aluminium and steel, which are to come into effect on April 9.

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“We could think about postponing them to April 30, but we certainly don’t oppose them,” Tajani said, adding, “We will support EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovi; this is clear. Let’s see if we can postpone them by a few weeks to have more time for dialogue.”

Tajani’s statements came to the public post the Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni's and other distinguished members of the Italian government's warning caught attention against the imposition of retaliatory tariffs on the US. Meloni conveyed, “(A trade war) would be deadly for the US as well as for Europe, and we have to protect our exports and industrial system, and to this end, it’s necessary to negotiate with the US and Europe must do it in a united way.”

He went on to say that ideally, the US and EU should find an agreement on zero tariffs on both sides. In his words, “An intermediate step could be a reduction by 10 per cent on US tariffs. Within a united Europe, Italy thinks it’s possible to work towards a postponement of European countermeasures, which means a frozen list (of counter-tariffs).”

He also mentioned that Meloni’s upcoming trip to the US, which is likely to happen in the short term, will aid in the arbitration between European nations and the US.

“I hope it can be useful; all European governments must convince the US to have a more conciliatory position. Then it will be the Commission, which will negotiate,” Tajani concluded.

Information credit: Anadolu Ajansi