Tariffs: Europe tries to relaunch negotiations. Negotiators fly to the US.

BRUSSELS – The European Commission is attempting to reconnect with the United States in its trade negotiations , abruptly cut short by Trump's new threats. After a phone call Monday evening with his American counterpart Howard Lutnick, this evening European Commissioner Sefcovic will meet with Trade Representative Jamieson Greer , the other White House negotiator. Meanwhile, a technical team has left for Washington .

We start again uphill

"An agreement by August 1st is still possible," is the official line from Brussels, reiterated on Tuesday by a Commission spokesperson. Therefore, in the two weeks remaining until August 1st—the date when the 30% US tariffs will kick in—everything possible will be done to reach one. It's clear, however, that Trump's new thrust, coming just when Europe believed an agreement was within reach, risks calling into question the entire negotiating platform , as well as the fundamental premise that what is discussed and agreed at the technical tables must then receive the decisive approval of the US president . The Commission declined to comment on any of these points. No political meetings are currently planned, although it's possible that Sefcovic and Greer will schedule one this evening.

The new list of countermeasures

While waiting to see if any kind of agreement in principle will actually be reached, Europe is preparing potential retaliation, in accordance with the "dual-track" strategy proposed by Ursula von der Leyen and endorsed by the member states. On Monday evening, the new list of counter-tariffs on €72 billion worth of American products was shared with the member states, whose opinions are awaited . In theory, they could still request adjustments, as they have done in recent weeks to protect their strong sectors from Trump's retaliation. In practice, the Commission is convinced that the consultations already held make it definitive and that the activation process ("under our control") can be expedited: only a qualified majority of member states could block it, and the political agreement is broad.

The Commission's prudence

Essentially, in the event of a failure to reach an agreement, the second tariff package should be ready for activation as early as the beginning of August, along with the first €21 billion package, already approved and now suspended. However, significantly, the agreed document lacks the level of the tariffs, which would need to be determined at the moment of truth. Everything will be ready "when needed," says the Commission. But with respect to requests from some countries, particularly France, for greater aggression, it's clear that the European executive is extremely cautious, believing it is necessary to restart negotiations : "It is not our intention to present any countermeasures before August 1st."