Before the showdown in the customs dispute with the European Union, US President Donald Trump played Golf again at noon. Photos show the 79-year-old on his luxury system in Ayrshire, shielded from a number of security forces. In the afternoon (5:30 p.m. CEST) Trump meets for a top conversation with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. It is eagerly awaited whether there is an agreement.
Trump called on reporters on the golf course when asked about the chances of a deal: “50:50”. Similarly, he had said shortly after arriving in Scotland. If a deal succeeds, according to Trump it would be “the largest of all”. From the Leyen had arrived in Scotland on Saturday evening, and she had recently reported on a “good phone call” with the US President.
Trump had threatened the EU tariffs of 30 percent on European imports from August 1st. However, he left the option open to deviate from this customs that the European Union should open its market more to the United States.
EP chief chief: agree yes, submit no
The EU and the United States had recently negotiated intensively. Now the balance sheet must be drawn and checked “to what extent a balanced result can be achieved that offers stability and predictability for companies and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic,” said the Commission in advance.
The German chairman of the European Parliament (EP) Commercial Committee, Bernd Lange, also considers a direct conversation with Trump to be essential. The central goal must be to significantly reduce the threatened tariffs of 30 percent, said Lange. If there is no framework agreement, counter tariffs and other measures are “focused”.
The European Union will “not be blackmailed” and “not subordinate to all the economic demands of the United States as in the case of Japan,” said the SPD European politician. “Negotiation and agree, but we won’t submit.”
