When the US president unleashed his crippling “Liberation Day” tariffs on April 2, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen gave her first reaction, not in Brussels, but from Uzbekistan where she was in talks to bolster trade ties with Central Asia.
Faced with Trump’s disruptive protectionism, Brussels is pulling out the stops to salvage its 1.6 trillion euro ($1.8 trillion) relationship with Europe’s main trade partner the United States.
“Europe continues to focus on diversifying its trade partnerships, engaging with countries that account for 87 percent of global trade and share our commitment to a free and open exchange of goods, services, and ideas,“ von der Leyen said on Thursday.
And the EU’s diversification efforts may hit roadblocks including the fact that the United States has a market power and demand unparalleled worldwide, experts say, which makes it hard to replace -- especially in the short term.
Trading places
The bloc made a show of agreeing to strengthen trade ties with Mexico days before Trump was sworn in, and reopened commerce negotiations with Malaysia on his inauguration day.
This week alone, the EU agreed to launch talks for a free trade deal with the United Arab Emirates and confirmed a high-level summit in China in July, hot on the heels of a meeting in Japan.
But before the EU starts striking new trade deals, the European Commission has previous agreements to get past member states including the Mercosur accord clinched in December.
Senior officials believe they can sway Paris -- which fears a flow of lower-cost agricultural goods outcompeting Europe’s farmers.
Fragile China ties
There’s also the issue of size.
Nonetheless, von der Leyen’s efforts are echoed by EU leaders including Spain.
One key relationship brings its share of pitfalls for the EU: China.
But there are signs of the potential for ties to improve, against the backdrop of a Beijing-Washington showdown.
An EU spokesman on Friday said the two sides had been discussing an alternative to the EU’s extra tariffs on electric vehicles made in China imposed last year after it found Beijing’s state aid to auto manufacturers was unfair.
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