A majority in the European Parliament on Thursday gave its approval to the trade agreement between the EU and the US, subject to certain conditions. The majority has thus not given its final approval, which is only expected after new talks with the EU countries.
The majority supports the EU reducing tariffs on certain US imports in accordance with the agreement that the EU Commission concluded with the US last year. However, additional safeguards are wanted.
The vote will certainly trigger a sigh of relief in Brussels, because negotiations can now get underway. The agreement was concluded with the US in the summer of 2025, but has been stuck in the EU Parliament's trade committee for several months. The EU Parliament's reluctance to approve the deal has sparked concerns that US President Donald Trump will eventually run out of patience.
This week, the US ambassador to the EU, Andrew Puzder, told Euronews that it "would be fiscally irresponsible" for the EU Parliament to reject the trade deal in Thursday's vote.
- We signed the deal in August 2025. Since then, the US has been complying with the deal every day. But there has not yet been a day when the Europeans have complied with the agreement, says Andrew Puzder.
Agreement has met with criticism
The original agreement has been criticized from several quarters in Europe for being a knee-jerk reaction to Trump and his demand for a 15 percent tariff on European goods.
However, according to the European Commission, the agreement was an attempt to create "predictability and stability" after Trump shook up global trade with increased tariffs in the spring of 2025. Since the agreement was concluded, however, the trade and political relationship between the EU and the US has been far from stable.
During January, tensions in the trade area between the EU and the US increased considerably due to the situation surrounding Greenland. Here, Trump threatened new tariffs on named European countries, including Denmark.
In February, however, the US Supreme Court ruled that Trump had not had the authority to impose global tariffs.
However, that did not make Trump give up. On February 20, Trump used the special section 122 of the US Trade Act. It allows for the imposition of global tariffs of ten percent on imported goods. However, the lower tariff rate of ten percent will only apply for 150 days, unless Congress approves an extension.
The Danish government and Danish business organizations see the agreement as the best achievable result in the attempt to ensure predictability for European companies.
Therefore, it is welcome that the EU Parliament has sent a signal on Thursday that "an agreement is an agreement", says Michael Bremerskov Jensen, Head of Global Market Development at the Danish Chamber of Commerce.
/ritzau/
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