Brussels plans targeted US tariffs, aims to exempt bourbon

European Commissioner for Industrial Strategy, Stéphane Sejourne, has emphasized that the European Union's response to US tariffs should be "proportionate," expressing hope that bourbon will be excluded from a proposed list of US imports subject to additional duties.

Speaking to France Inter radio, Sejourne noted that the European Commission, which oversees EU trade policy, plans to present a list of US products to face extra tariffs in response to President Donald Trump’s steel and aluminium tariffs, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

However, he made it clear that these measures would not be a broad-based retaliatory action. The list of targeted US goods is set to be discussed with EU members on April 7.

The EU faces a 25 per cent import tariff on steel, aluminium, and cars, as well as reciprocal tariffs of 20 per cent on nearly all other goods from April 3. Among the products that have sparked particular debate is bourbon, with the European Commission proposing a 50 per cent tariff on the popular US whiskey. This move has led to a response from Trump, who has threatened to impose a 200 per cent counter-tariff on EU alcoholic beverages if the measure is implemented.

Sejourne expressed concern about the impact of such tariffs, especially on the alcohol sector. "For bourbon, I have hopes that this element is taken out of the list. We will see in the coming hours," he said, reflecting the ongoing deliberations within the EU.

In addition to tariffs, Sejourne suggested that the EU has other methods to exert pressure on the US, including the possibility of "withdrawing US companies from our European public markets." While acknowledging that this would require careful consideration of the specific sectors involved, he stated, "We need to look at exactly which sectors and why we can do it, but it's one of the subjects on the table."

The European Commission’s upcoming decisions on tariffs and the broader response to the US measures are expected to shape EU-US trade relations in the coming months.

By Vafa Guliyeva