EU Trade Commissioner To Travel To US To Discuss Tariffs On Steel And Aluminum

EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic is traveling to Washington for the first time since the EU-US trade agreement reached in July 2025. Sefcovic aims to overcome the stalled process regarding the removal of the 50% US tariffs on European steel and aluminum exports.

The EU's trade commissioner, Maros Sefcovic, will visit the US on Thursday and Friday. The purpose of the visit is to open the way for negotiations on the 50% tariffs that US President Donald Trump implemented shortly after returning to office last year and which still affect EU steel and aluminum exports. The removal of these tariffs was part of the EU-US trade agreement reached in July 2025.

The agreement included commitments to discuss quota arrangements to replace the 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum. However, the implementation of the broader agreement, which includes a reduction in EU tariffs on US industrial goods, has been hampered by delays by members of the European Parliament. This has effectively halted negotiations on metals.Gill added that the focus will shift to where the parties stand in implementing their "mutual commitments" under the agreement. According to information obtained by Euronews, resolving issues related to steel and aluminum trade will be at the top of the agenda. The agreement was reached in Turnberry, Scotland, in the summer of 2025 between Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Trump, following weeks of trade tensions. During this process, Sefcovic repeatedly traveled to Washington to defuse the dispute and prevent harsher tariffs.

 The Commission ultimately accepted 15% tariffs on exports from Europe to the US under the agreement, which is widely seen as unbalanced in Europe. The agreement is currently being debated among EU countries and members of the European Parliament before it is fully implemented. Sefcovic's visit will be his first since the Turnberry Agreement. The agreement has been frozen several times by EU lawmakers following Trump's renewed tariff threats on Greenland. The US Supreme Court's ruling that most of the US tariffs implemented in 2025 were illegal also shifted the balance. In the days that followed, the White House changed the legal basis to maintain the tariffs as part of its nationalist "America First" trade agenda. However, these measures are set to expire in July and will then require the approval of the US Congress.

Points of Pressure In the coming days, Sefcovic's goal will be to ensure that the US adheres to the agreed 15% tariffs. His agenda includes meetings with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. He will also travel to Capitol Hill to meet with members of Congress. This visit will be Sefcovic's first since the Turnberry Agreement. Washington has linked the removal of steel and aluminum tariffs to the EU softening its digital rules, which it believes target large US technology companies. The Commission, however, has always maintained its sovereign right to legislate, arguing that it applies the rules impartially. Nevertheless, discussions have recently emerged regarding the establishment of an EU-US forum on digital issues. It remains unclear whether this concession will be enough to persuade the US to back down on metals.

REFERENCE

https://tr.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/04/22/ab-ticaret-komiseri-celik-ve-aluminyumdaki-gumruk-vergilerini-gorusmek-icin-abdye-gidiyor