The move was announced by the leaders of three pro-European political groups in the European Parliament, including the two largest, effectively blocking the vote needed to approve the deal.
The agreement, negotiated in mid-last year, had helped defuse a transatlantic trade war by setting a 15 percent tariff on most European products while the EU agreed to lift duties on selected U.S. industrial and agricultural goods, boost investment in the U.S. economy and increase purchases of American energy resources.
European People’s Party leader Manfred Weber was the first to react, saying his group supports the EU–US trade deal in principle but cannot back it at this stage in light of Trump’s threats over Greenland, calling for a pause on zero-tariff access for U.S. products.
He was echoed by the head of the Socialists and Democrats, Iratxe García Pérez, who described the threatened tariffs against U.S. allies as unacceptable and urged the EU to suspend the deal and activate its Anti-Coercion Instrument.
Liberals from Renew Europe have also joined the opposition.
Their leader Valérie Hayer said Trump’s threats, combined with what she described as other aggressive actions toward the EU, mean the bloc must move from reliance to deterrence, including possible countermeasures such as tariffs, investment restrictions or limits on public procurement.
Together, the three groups command a majority in the European Parliament, making a ratification vote impossible for now.
As Beata Płomecka reports, the debate has also revived calls for the EU to consider using its so-called “nuclear option” - the Anti-Coercion Instrument - a tool never used before, even as the bloc has so far sought to avoid escalating tensions with the United States and continue dialogue.
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Source: IAR/Polish Radio/PR24
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