President Donald Trump said Sunday that he would delay tariffs that were set to be imposed next week on the European Union until July 9.
Trump told reporters that he made the decision to postpone the levies following a conversation with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, who had requested an extension so that they could continue to negotiate over Trump’s proposed 50 percent tariffs that were set to be in place June 1.
“She said she wants to get down to serious negotiation, because … they have to do that,” he said. “And we had a very nice call. And I agreed to move it.”
Trump said that he and the Europeans intend to “rapidly get together and see if we can work something out.”
His comments came as he prepared to return to Washington, and followed a post on Truth Social that also said that he would make the extension and that “[i]t was my privilege to do so.”
Trump also said that he had some “very good talks” with Iran over its nuclear program.
“We’ve had some real progress, serious progress,” he said.
In a social media post Friday, Trump criticized European diplomats as being “very difficult to deal with” and said trade talks were “going nowhere!”
As a result, Trump said he was “recommending a straight 50% tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday that the president’s threats were aimed at stirring European officials.
“I would hope this would light a fire under the E.U.,” Bessent said on Fox News.
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