Dublin (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The trade minister of Ireland said he believes there is a strong consensus among European Union nations for a “calm, measured” response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and that U.S. digital services will not be affected at this juncture.
Talking to Newstalk Radio, Simon Harris said,
“I’ve spoken to most of my European counterparts… and my strong sense now is that the majority view by some distance is to take a calm, measured response and to try and get the U.S. to the table.”
What measures did France propose in response to US tariffs?
Recently, Eric Lombard, France’s Economy and Finance Minister, proposed responding to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs by enforcing stricter regulations on the data practices of U.S. Big Tech firms.
“We may strengthen certain administrative requirements or regulate the use of data,”
Lombard stated in an interview with Le Journal Du Dimanche. He also said that another option could be to “tax certain activities,” without going into more detail. A French government spokesperson already expressed last week that the EU’s retaliation against U.S. tariffs could include “digital services that are currently not taxed.”
Why does Ireland oppose targeting U.S. digital services?
Ireland strongly opposed that suggestion, as it is home to the European headquarters of many U.S. Big Tech companies.
Similarly, a few days ago, Ireland’s trade minister, Simon Harris, said that targeting U.S. digital services in potential reciprocal trade actions is not the European Union‘s standing and would be very dangerous, insisting on negotiations.
Harris addressed remarks made by a spokesperson from the French government, who stated that services- particularly digital services- are expected to be a priority in EU measures reacting to the latest U.S. tariffs. Numerous major U.S. technology companies have established their EU headquarters in Ireland.
“That’s not the position of the European Union. Different countries may have different perspectives, but the position of the European Union is outlined by the Commission president this morning,”
Harris informed the national broadcaster RTE.
“I can understand why countries reference the instruments that are at our disposal, should they be required, but we should really work to avoid ever getting to that point… The position has to be negotiate to a better level and I am confident that that’s where the very significant majority perspective is,”
Harris added.
