EU Pushes Back Against U.S. Tariff Demands, Moves to Diversify Trade as China Seeks Closer Ties

The European Union has drawn a clear line to fierce trade negotiations with the United States, asserting that it will not force the pressure to accept a skewed deal, even though the clock has fallen into a fragile tariff set to expire in early July.

The European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Maros Sefcovic, told lawmakers in the European Parliament on Tuesday that the EU would not be in agreement with a trade arrangement that disturbed its interests.

“We do not feel weak. We do not feel under the inappropriate pressure to accept a deal that is unfair for us,” Sefcovic declared, that Brussels is not willing to be strongly armed with economic concessions.

The standoff arrived as the EU faced ongoing US tariffs of 25 percent in major exports, including steel, aluminum, and cars. A 90-day pause on trade penalties, which means giving both sides of time to reach a compromise, is set to expire on July 8. Without a breakthrough, tariffs can jump further, prompting revenge from the EU and rising a volatile transatlantic trade relationship.

Sefcovic announced that talking to Washington, while ongoing, struck road barriers despite the EU's “tested and looking” measures on the table. “It is not easy,” he said, acknowledging that negotiations may collapse.

Europe is ready to retaliate

The European Commission appears to be preparing for that situation. Sefcovic said Bloc is “preparing” to recreate rebalancing steps – drawing tariffs that have been suspended as a good gesture as the talks continue. He emphasized that such tariffs will only return if negotiations fail, but it is clarified that the EU will not sit without a silence by the US hike its levies unevenly.

In addition, Sefcovic has signed Brussels that can revive the US case against the World Trade Organization, calling for tariffs “unfair, unfair, and total violation of international commercial law.” The EU has long criticized the US approach as an act of economic aggression wrapped in the language of national security.

Looking across Washington

While Eu-US trade tensions are acting, Bloc actively deepens relationships elsewhere, a step that can significantly change the global trade map. Sefcovic emphasized the need to tap into the “87 percent of global trade not involved in the United States,” emphasizing Europe's driving to reduce the strategic dependency in Washington.

In recent months, the EU has been sealed or advanced trading packages with Mercosur, the UAE, and Canada-which is part of a broader push to vary partnerships and risk economic perspective. Trade officials said this change was not only about sitting against the US volatility, but also about the development of stability amid increased protectionism and the destruction of the supply chain.

Step to China

Beijing, who watched the Transatlantic Discord, took the moment to re -engage in Europe with diplomatic caught. On Tuesday, Chinese president Xi Jinping called for a deeper EU-China cooperation, marking 50 years since the diplomatic relationship between the two powers was established.

Speaking by the state media outlet Xinhua, Xi emphasizes openness and conversation as a path to “coexistence of fairness and justice” and oppose “unilateral bullying” —Thinly veiled language aimed at Washington's heavy trading doctrine under President Donald Trump.

Xi's statements have removed any direct mention of the United States, but they are aligned with Beijing's long-standing approach to position Europe as a counterweight in global trade, especially as China struggles to reduce the impact of sweeping US tariffs on its exports.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian confirmed that high levels between Beijing and Brussels were in the works. The agenda covers economic policy, green development, digitalization, and strategic cooperation. Beijing also expanded invitation to EU leaders, along with council President Antonio Costa and Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, for a new circulation of leadership meetings.

Noteworthy, China recently agreed to lift the penalties imposed on European Parliament members and its subclaborators to human rights, the restrictions introduced in 2021 in revenge on the west of China's western treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. The move is widely interpreted as an olive branch, aimed at cleaning diplomatic obstacles and restoring trade dialogue.

Lin said both sides see modified exchanges as “very important” under current global conditions.

“We believe this dialogue will inject a new momentum into China-EU relationships,” he added.

A global shift

Developments point to a larger realignment in global trade diplomacy. Europe, traditionally caught between the two largest economies in the world, is beginning to assert more autonomy. That is seen not only in its hard posture toward Washington but also its careful relationship with Beijing, one who seeks economic opportunity while talking against geopolitical risks.

However, analysts warn that European balancing gesture remains delicate. The EU is deeply integrated into the US economy and sharing strategic relations through NATO and other institutions. However, its exposure to increasing tariffs and political trading measures motivates a thinking about how it communicates with the global future in the economy.