The European Union pushed back Friday at renewed trade pressure from the United States, after Washington accused Brussels of enabling Chinese tariff evasion and demanded it roll back flagship environmental supply chain rules.
Washington’s ambassador to the EU, Andrew Puzder, called on the bloc to “align” the provisions of two landmark laws – the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive – with the EU-US trade deal struck last year. “Now it’s time for the EU to deliver,” Puzder posted on X, attaching a US government document listing dozens of “concerns” with the rules.
US Threatens Action
The US document warned that “the United States will take any actions necessary to address unreasonable burdens on US commerce absent a solution that addresses these concerns.” It argued that the directives’ “extraterritorial reach and costly and onerous supply chain due diligence obligations will adversely impact the ability of US businesses to compete on a level playing field in the EU market.”
European Commission spokesperson Arianna Podesta responded that the EU continued to “exchange on both tariff and non-tariff issues” with Washington, calling the process “constructive.” But she drew a firm line:
“We have been very clear and consistent on the fact that neither our rules framework nor our regulatory autonomy are up for negotiation.”
CBAM Under Fire
Puzder’s remarks came a day after he attacked the EU’s carbon border tax, known as CBAM, calling it “a tariff in substance, no matter the ‘climate policy’ label.” The CBAM, which imposes levies on carbon-intensive imports from countries with weaker climate rules, has long been a target of US criticism.
The EU has already scaled back both supply chain directives under pressure from businesses, delaying implementation and exempting smaller firms. But Washington said those concessions did not go far enough.
Separately, the EU was among dozens of trading partners flagged in a White House report on Thursday as a risk for “illegal transshipment” from China, where goods are rerouted through third countries to dodge Trump’s sweeping tariffs. The report also named Mexico, Canada and Japan, and vowed to use artificial intelligence to detect such practices.
Podesta said Brussels was “engaging” with Washington to understand the report’s implications, noting that it found EU transshipment risk was “embedded within broad legitimate trade flows.” The EU-US trade relationship, governed by last year’s Turnberry Accord that set 15% levies on most European goods, remains under strain as both sides spar over regulatory sovereignty and market access.
Sources: Euronews; The Local; AFP
discussion