The European Union is preparing to accept a new round of U.S. tariffs linked to forced labour concerns, provided they stay within the 15% ceiling agreed under last year’s EU-U.S. trade deal, Euronews reported.
The European Commission said it disagrees with Washington’s findings on forced labour but is focused on ensuring that any new duties do not breach the cap agreed by U.S. President Donald Trump and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Turnberry, Scotland, in July 2025.
The current U.S. tariff regime expires on Friday, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has said the new forced-labour duties are expected to be implemented soon.
European officials are now watching the level of the new tariffs closely. Under the Turnberry agreement, the U.S. capped most duties on EU goods at 15%, while the EU agreed to remove tariffs on most U.S. industrial goods.
“Of course we do not agree with the findings on forced labour, and we’ve made that very clear to our United States counterparts,” a senior EU official said. “But the main objective is to make sure that the agreement is respected.”
The Commission’s position reflects a cautious approach: Brussels is not endorsing the new U.S. tariffs, but it appears ready to tolerate them if they remain inside the trade deal’s limits and preserve predictability for European companies.
