EU says it will accept no increase in US tariffs after Supreme Court ruling: ‘a deal is a deal’

The European Commission demanded on Sunday that the United States stick to the terms of an EU-U.S. trade deal reached last year, after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Donald Trump’s global tariffs and he responded with new levies across the board.

The Commission, which negotiates trade policy on behalf of the 27 EU member states, said Washington must provide “full clarity” on the steps it intends to take following the court ruling.

After the court struck down Trump’s global tariffs on Friday, the U.S. president announced temporary, across-the-board tariffs of 10%, which he then hiked to 15% a day later.

Trump defies Supreme Court tariff ruling, escalates global duties to 15% amid EU push for unity

“The current situation is not conducive to delivering ‘fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial’ transatlantic trade and investment, as agreed to by both sides” in the joint statement setting out the terms of last year’s trade agreement, the Commission said. “A deal is a deal.”

The comments were far more strongly worded than the Commission’s initial response on Friday, which had said only that it was studying the outcome of the Supreme Court decision and keeping in contact with the U.S. administration.

Last year’s trade deal set a 15% U.S. tariff rate for most EU goods, apart from those covered by other sectoral tariffs such as on steel. It also allowed zero tariffs on some products such as aircraft and spare parts. The EU agreed to remove import duties on many U.S. goods and withdrew a threat to retaliate with higher levies.

“In particular, EU products must continue to benefit from the most competitive treatment, with no increases in tariffs beyond the clear and all-inclusive ceiling previously agreed,” the EU executive said, adding that unpredictable tariffs were disruptive and undermined confidence across global markets.

It said that EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič had discussed the issue with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Saturday.

The Supreme Court ruling complicates the fragile equilibrium struck in July 2025 at Trump’s Turnberry golf course in Scotland, where European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen negotiated a deal capping US tariffs on most EU goods at 15% – down from a threatened 30% – in exchange for EU investments in the U.S., buying an average of about $250 billion per year of U.S. LNG, and zero tariffs on certain U.S. imports to Europe.

Steel and aluminium faced steeper 50% duties, carved out separately, leading to a 30% drop in EU steel exports to the US by early 2026.

The Turnberry agreement, hailed by Trump as the “biggest deal ever” and by von der Leyen as providing “crucial stability,” drew sharp criticism for being skewed toward the US and negotiated informally, bypassing full EU processes.

Detractors called it a “humiliation,” with the EU accepting duties while slashing its own tariffs, amid accusations of appeasement.

U.S. Supreme Court invalidates Trump’s tariffs: a win for free trade with thorny implications for EU

The European Parliament has not yet ratified the Turnberry trade agreement with the U.S. The Parliament’s international trade committee, led by Bernd Lange, has proposed pausing or suspending legislative work on the ratification once again. The Parliament’s hesitation reflects broader concerns over reliability, potential breaches, and the lack of stability in transatlantic trade relations.

Pure tariff chaos from the US administration. No one can make sense of it anymore — only open questions and growing uncertainty for the EU and other US trading partners (1/3)
— Bernd Lange (@berndlange) February 22, 2026

With Reuters, with additional content by EUalive.

Caption: Maros Sefcovic European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency, at the start of a College of Commissioners meeting at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, 18 February 2026. EPA/OLIVIER HOSLET