WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) – European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom says it has targeted some iconic American imports like Harley-Davidson motorbikes and bourbon for tariffs in hopes that it will “make noise” in the trade debate and put pressure on U.S. leaders.
The EU announced this week it would begin taxing U.S. imports worth about $3.4 billion from Friday, in response to President Donald Trump’s decision to put tariffs on European steel and aluminum.
During an interview Thursday in New Zealand, where she was launching free-trade negotiations, Malmstrom said the EU is not dumping steel. She says its steel is high-quality and needed by the U.S., and is not a threat to U.S. national security as Trump has claimed.
She says if it can’t convince the U.S., maybe American businesses and consumers could.