President Donald Trump has agreed to a request for an extension on a proposed 50% tariff on imports from the European Union, which he initially threatened would go into effect on June 1.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump said he received a call from European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen requesting an extension on the June 1 tariff hike.
“I agreed to the extension — July 9, 2025 — It was my privilege to do so,” Trump wrote. “The Commission President said that talks will begin rapidly. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
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While speaking to reporters on Sunday at Morristown Municipal Airport in New Jersey, Trump said von der Leyen called him and said she wants to have a “serious negotiation.”
“July 9th was the date she requested. … And I agreed to do that,” Trump said. “[von der Leyen] said we will rapidly get together and see if we can work something out.”
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Von der Leyen also took to X to say she had a “good call” with Trump and that Europe is “ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively.”
On Friday, Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on imports from the European Union amid ongoing trade negotiations.
“Their powerful Trade Barriers, Vat Taxes, ridiculous Corporate Penalties, Non-Monetary Trade Barriers, Monetary Manipulations, unfair and unjustified lawsuits against Americans Companies, and more, have led to a Trade Deficit with the U.S. of more than $250,000,000 a year, a number which is totally unacceptable,” Trump said. “…Therefore, I am recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025.”
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The EU tariff threat came after Vice President JD Vance met with von der Leyen and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on May 18.
Earlier this week, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said President Donald Trump is trying to “light a fire” under the European Union.
“I would hope that this would light a fire under the EU, because… I’ve said before, [the] EU has a collective action problem here,” Bessent said on “America’s Newsroom”. “It’s 27 countries, but they’re being represented by this one group in Brussels. So some of the feedback that I’ve been getting is that the underlying countries don’t even know what the EU is negotiating on their behalf.”
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