Brussels says US trade deal is also ‘about Ukraine'
Speaking on Monday, Šefčovič said that the deal – which will impose a flat 15% tariff on most EU exports – was 'not only about trade' but tied to broader geopolitical concerns.
'It's about security; it's about Ukraine; it's about current geopolitical volatility,' Šefčovič told reporters. 'I cannot go into [all the] details [about] what was discussed yesterday, but I can assure you it was not only about trade.'
Šefčovič's comments follow growing concern in Europe over the durability of US support for Ukraine, which continues to face escalating Russian attacks more than three years after the full-scale invasion began.
Donald Trump – who had an explosive public spat with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier this year – has repeatedly criticised previous US support for Ukraine and has sought to pressure both Kyiv and Moscow to end the war.
However, the US president has become increasingly frustrated by Vladimir Putin's refusal to agree to a ceasefire in recent weeks, and has threatened to impose "secondary tariffs" of up to 100% on countries that purchase Russian oil.
Trump also recently pledged to deliver Patriot missile defence systems to Kyiv, although he stressed they will be purchased by EU member states.
Šefčovič, however, hinted that the deal was an 'additional price' to pay for getting Washington to be 'aligned' with Brussels 'on the geopolitical issues of today'.
'It has additional worth in having this deal done, because I believe that from now, we can go only for the better,' he said. A deal to divide them all Sunday's deal – which will also see the bloc purchase $750 billion worth of US oil, gas, and nuclear energy over the next three years – was also vehemently criticised by Moscow.
'The deal is clearly aimed against Russia, as it bans Russian oil and gas purchases,' said Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who currently serves as deputy chairman of the Kremlin's Security Council.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán – one of Trump's few EU allies and a close partner of Putin – denounced the agreement, accusing the US president of having "eaten Ursula von der Leyen for breakfast" during negotiations.
France – which has become an increasingly fierce backer of Ukraine in recent years – similarly condemned the deal, and urged Brussels to activate its much-vaunted 'trade bazooka' to target US services exports to the EU.
Several other member states including Germany, Italy, Slovakia, and Czechia offered cautious endorsements of the deal, while stressing that key details still need to be clarified.
(cs)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euractiv
an hour ago
- Euractiv
The Brief – Selling the same deal twice
Make no mistake about it, while Trump's 15% tariff diktat has sparked widespread outrage from EU policy wonks, Ursula von der Leyen's promise to spend big on American defence gear is just standing policy dressed up as a new peace offering. Trump was ebulliant as he listed the terms the EU is signing up for – not just punitive levies on EU goods but also the commitment to buy a "vast amount of [American] military equipment'. Like so many leaders before her, von der Leyen sat mutely beside the irritable US President, trying hard to put on a plucky complexion but looking closer to death than triumph. The lack of protestation about the Commission's apparent overreach on defence matters reveals a new negotiation tactic – namely, playing to Trump's vanity and indifference for detail. Allow him to brandish big numbers that would inevitably have been reached. If he insists on spinning this as a BIG political WIN, so be it. The 5% NATO pledge secured last month already commits most EU members to greatly increase their spending on US military supplies. Not for lack of trying, the bloc's own defence industries cannot meet the enormous leap in demand, leaving nations with no choice but to substantially bulk up their orders from US companies. And whilst the Commission aims to nurture Europe's own defence industry, this will take years to grow into a viable competitor to the US goliath. American prowess in defence materials is so established that EU leaders can hardly go without them. Billion-dollar contracts for F-35 fighter planes and Patriot missiles are piling up. On Sunday, Trump put his mark on decisions that would have been taken regardless of an EU trade deal. This was a victory the EU could hand the big man – notwithstanding the awkward fact that defence spending is beyond the remit of the Commission. No ego trip could have deluded von der Leyen into assuming such authority. She knows full well how ardently EU countries cling to their hard power. But since Trump relishes any opportunity to paint himself an invincible broker, von der Leyen's evident discomfort was a small price to pay for placating the leader of the free world. Let him have it his way. Roundup Macron demands more muscle – The French president lamented that "Europe does not yet see itself sufficiently as a power" and called on the EU to 'work tirelessly' to rebalance the relationship with the US. This is not the end of the story, the negotiation has to continue," he told the Council of ministers on Wednesday. Ribera calls out lack of action on Israel – The Commission executive vice-president criticised the 'insufficient measures" taken against Israel's 'disproportionate response' in Gaza, adding that Israel's actions are "not justified by any means under international, humanitarian or even war law.' Eurozone slowdown – The eurozone economy grew by 0.1% in the second quarter of this year, according to preliminary figures released by Eurostat on Wednesday, defying forecasts amid growing concern over the impact of the recent EU-US trade deal. Across Europe High-speed rail in Portugal – Work can begin on a new high-speed train line between Lisbon and Porto after the European Investment Bank (EIB) wrote out a first cheque for €875 million in financing on Tuesday. Dying in dignity – With euthanasia and assisted dying still illegal in most EU countries, many have no choice but to cross borders to end their suffering. Such a discrepancy in how the issue is handled across Europe makes it difficult for those experiencing chronic illness to plan a dignified end to their lives close to home. Sex blog catches up with Austria's EU ambassador – Austria's ambassador to the EU resigned following allegations that he was behind a misogynistic blog under a female pseudonym. Archived pages of the blog include the author, writing under the pseudonym "Caro", recounting a graphic nightclub sexual assault scene from the woman's perspective.
Euractiv
2 hours ago
- Euractiv
French Greens urge Commission to stop destruction of USAID-funded contraceptives
The French delegation of the Greens/EFA group has urged the European Commission to block the planned destruction of €10 million worth of contraceptives funded by the now-defunct US aid agency USAID. In a letter this week, the French Greens, led by MEP Mélissa Camara, called on the Commission to urgently launch a "joint diplomatic initiative" to push for the suspension of the planned destruction of the unused contraceptives. These are currently held in Geel and scheduled for transport to a waste facility in Fos-sur-Mer, France. The Trump administration, which dismantled the US Agency for International Development (USAID) earlier this year, has reportedly ordered the destruction of still-usable USAID contraceptives. 'This decision is outrageously scandalous, inhumane, and absurd,' Camara told Euractiv. The letter, addressed to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Commissioners Oliver Várhelyi (Health), Jozef Síkela (International Partnerships) and Hadja Lahbib (Equality), urges the EU to mediate with NGOs willing to deliver the products to countries in need. Several NGOs have reportedly offered to purchase the stock in recent weeks, but no agreement has been reached. The US administration appears prepared to proceed with the destruction, which is estimated to cost €150,000, rather than approve resale or donation. The MEPs also issued a broader appeal for "explicit political support for humanitarian organisations ready to redistribute these contraceptives," despite strained relations between the Commission and NGOs following recent funding cuts. 'The European Union sees itself as a leading defender of sexual and reproductive health. We cannot allow Donald Trump's anti-choice agenda to unfold,' said Camara. The lawmakers also requested that the Commission's legal services assess the legality of destroying medical goods on EU soil under EU legislation, citing the bloc's commitments to sustainable development and gender equality. 'The European Union cannot become complicit, even indirectly, in regressive policies, nor can it tolerate the destruction of vital medical resources that could save lives,' the letter concluded.
Euractiv
3 hours ago
- Euractiv
Commission preparing new rules on EU funds distribution based on ‘Lex Hungary'
Read the original in Hungarian . The EU's 2028-2034 spending plan, scheduled to be published next Wednesday and marking the start of at least a couple of years of laborious negotiations, will extend the link between payments and democratic backsliding, according to a document seen by Politico. Previously, only parts of the €1.2 trillion budget have been linked. According to the leaked document, the EU executive intends to ensure that all EU funds are subject to conditionality, thereby preventing member states from circumventing EU standards by reallocating funds. While the EU has taken action against Hungary and already withheld some funding the next budget will provide for a streamlined and harmonized conditionality system for all EU funds allocated to member states, according to the document. The Commission wants to move away from the current system where member states with particular issues could be tempted to shift some investments between programs to avoid being subject to a particular condition, it states. This would mark a significant departure from the current approach, whereby conditions are only applied to certain elements of the budget. After the publication of the budget proposal, governments will begin negotiations with each other on a final text ― but this is a lengthy process that is not expected to conclude until 2027, the portal said. 'The Conditionality Regulation must be applied to all EU funding,' Finland wrote in its position paper on the new budget, seen by Politico. But Hungary retorted in its own document that these rules 'allowed for exerting arbitrary political pressure in policy areas unrelated to the protection of the Union's budget.' Slovakia, which has also been criticized over rule-of-law issues, echoed these arguments in its own submission. Hungary, which has already lost €18 billion in EU funds (€10.5 billion in reconstruction funds and €7.5 billion in cohesion transfers) due to breaches of the rule of law, is set to be hit hardest. Under the direct link between a breach of the rule of law and the related payment while farmers' subsidies will be untouched by a government's authoritarian drift, a student exchange program might suffer if there have been breaches of academic freedom. The overall idea is that civil society shouldn't bear the brunt of a leader's misdoings. The Commission wants to keep the money flowing to the recipients of EU funding ― such as NGOs or universities ― regardless of whether a government complies with the rule of law. The current reform plan is essentially a 'Lex Hungary', given the particularly sharp tensions between Viktor Orbán and the European Commission. The Hungarian Prime Minister has been in conflict with Brussels for years and is facing elections in 2026. According to an EU diplomat, the Commission is exploiting Orbán's domestic weaknesses ― he is trailing behind his conservative pro-EU rival Péter Magyar and his Tisza Party in the polls ― to propose stricter rules. With national capitals not expected to vote on the new rules until 2027, there's a chance Orbán might be out of office before the budget is approved. Commission officials are confident that a Magyar-led government would mend ties with Brussels and implement the EU-required reforms to access blocked funds. They are also preparing for a different scenario, though. Renew, the European Parliament's liberal group, wants to take this a step further. It supports directly handing the frozen EU funds to civil society, effectively bypassing the central government. This new system, known as 'smart conditionality,' would mark a change from the current rules, where frozen funds are handed back to the EU's 27 countries collectively after an expiration date. "We set clear conditions: No EU money for autocrats, but continued support for civil society," Valérie Hayer, the chair of Renew, said on Thursday. 'She [Commission President Ursula von der Leyen] made a commitment. Now it's up to her to keep her word.' However, 'smart conditionality' has been criticised on the grounds that it reduces national governments' incentives to carry out the required reforms. Commissioners are expected to address this issue during emergency budget talks scheduled for the weekend.
