WASHINGTON: In response to the EU’s most recent antitrust fine against Google, US President Donald Trump warned on Friday to impose tariffs and launch a formal trade probe.
The bloc “will pay a very big price for this illegal and highly unethical conduct, which I have consistently warned them about”, Trump stated in a statement on is Truth Social platform.
He declared that he expected a “substainal Tariff” on the EU “at the earliest possible moment” and that he would “immediately initiate a 301 investigation” into what he described as the EU’s practice of “ROBBING” American businesses.
He wrote, “We will not permit the United States of America to be a “PIGGYBANK” for Europe.
The 1974 Trade Act’s Section 301 gives Washington the authority to investigate harmful foreign practices and impose tariffs in retaliation.
A day after the White House announced broad new tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% that would target 60 trading partners, including the European Union, Trump made his ultimatum.
Following investigations, the new tariffs went into effect on Friday and were based on the same legal ratiobnale under Section 301 of the Trade Act.
Since the US Supreme Court invalidated many of his levies in Febryary, Trump has been working to rebuild his tariff wall and his authority to levy charges at short notice.
Google was fined 890 million euros ($1 billion) by the European Commission on Thursday for violating the Digital Makrets Act (DMA), the bloc’s historic legislation that regulates the behavior of major online platforms.
It was the company’s first punishment under the law.
In two different rulings, the Commission fined Google 460 million euros for favoring its own hotel, shopping, transportation, and sports services in search results and 430 million euros for prohibiting app developers from directing users to less expensive deals outside of the Google Play store.
The decision was initially criticized by US commerce Representative Jamieson Greer on Thursday, who claimed that the EU’s enforcement action disrupted “constructive dialogue” and presented a “real risk” to the stability of transatlantic commerce.
Big Tech gatekeepers may be fined up to 10% of global yearly turnover for violations and up to 20% for repeat crimes under the DMA.
According to an EU official, the fines imposed on Thursday only represented 0.22 percent of Google’s revenue.
“We are very committed to our rules”, EU tech director Henna Virkkunen told reporters, reiterating that Europe would not compromise on enforcing its laws. Although Washington consistently disputes this assertion, EU officials have stressed that its digital regulation is not directed at US companies.
Since Trump’s re-election in January 2025, US tech businesses have developed stronger relationships with the White House, with a number of them personally pushing the president on European regulations.
The trade framework that Washington and Brussels agreed upon last year, which reduced US taxes on European automobiles in exchange for concession from the region, is put to the test by the escalating tensions.
The agreement, which just recently passed its last legal obstacles in the EU, was reached by both parties in prder to prevent an agonizing trade war.
SOURCE: DAWN NEWS
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