Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and U.S. President Donald Trump had a “good exchange” on Sunday, according to a Commission spokesperson. They also stated that the European Union still aims to reach a trade agreement with the US by July 9.
“We want to reach a deal with the U.S. We want to avoid tariffs. We believe they cause pain. We want to achieve win-win outcomes, not lose-lose outcomes.”,
The spokespersons said during a daily press briefing.
Why did Trump extend the tariff deadline again?
The Trump administration announced on Sunday that it would extend the deadline for reinstating broad tariffs to August 1. If countries do not secure new trade agreements with the US by then, their tariffs would revert to the rates established on April 2, according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The Trump administration set the initial deadline of July 9, 2025, for countries, including the European Union, to finalise new trade deals to avoid the reinstatement of higher tariffs. If no deal is reached by that date, tariffs would revert to the higher rates imposed on April 2, 2025, which could be as high as 50% on EU products such as French cheese and German electronics.
On May 28, 2025, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, made a phone call to U.S. President Donald Trump, where she was able to persuade him to extend the suspension of the threatened tariffs on EU goods until July 9, 2025.
How close are EU-US trade negotiations to success?
The European Commission also confirmed that it is working towards a Wednesday deadline, previously set by Trump, to reach a preliminary agreement that would include a 10 per cent baseline tariff.
“We’re working towards July 9, at the point where we want to have an agreement in principle at a minimum with the U.S.,”
Olof Gill, the Commission’s trade spokesperson, stated at the midday briefing.
Gill also said that discussions were at “the beginning of the endgame” at least for an arrangement in principle.
“We’re fully geared up to get an agreement in principle by Wednesday. And we’re firing on all cylinders to that effect,”
He said.
