Not Yet Inaugurated, Donald Trump Has Spread Threats To The European Union

JAKARTA - President-elect of the United States (US) Donald Trump asked the European Union (EU) to increase oil and gas imports from the US. If this is not done, the European Union will face a threat of high tariffs on their exports, including exports of cars and machines.

US government data shows that the European Union has become America's largest buyer of oil and gas. However, US export capacity has now reached its maximum limit. Trump promised to increase energy production to meet additional demand.

"I have conveyed to the European Union that they must close the large trade deficit with the United States through purchasing our large amounts of oil and gas. Otherwise, there will be tariffs," Donald Trump wrote on the Truth Social platform, quoted on Saturday, December 21.

The European Commission expressed its readiness to discuss with Donald Trump to strengthen bilateral relations, including in the energy sector.

"EU is committed to ending energy dependence from Russia and diversifying our supply sources," a European Commission spokesman said.

According to Eurostat data, during the first quarter of 2024, the US supplied 47% of imports of European Union's liquefied natural gas (LNG) and 17% of its oil demand.

Donald Trump, who will be sworn in on January 20, 2025, has pledged to impose a tariff of 10% on all global imports to the US, including 60% tariff for goods from China. According to trade experts, this move could disrupt trade flows, increase costs, and trigger retaliation from US trading partners.

Based on data from the US Census Bureau, the trade deficit in goods with the European Union in 2023 reached US$ 208.7 billion. Although the US recorded a surplus in service trading, Donald Trump is more focused on trading goods, especially the automotive sector. He often criticizes the export of cars from the European Union to the US which is not balanced with the number of vehicles exported from the US to Europe.

Car exports from Germany and Italy currently face a rate of 2.5% in the US. This figure could have increased fourfold if Donald Trump's threat to the European Union was realized.