MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Wednesday, May 20th 2026 - 01:27 UTC
The ratification process was delayed by the reluctance of the European Parliament, which at the start of the year blocked the text in response to the Trump administration's threats against Greenland
Negotiators from the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, and the European Commission reached a provisional agreement in the early hours of Wednesday on the final text of the tariff pact with the United States, in a decision that closes ten months of negotiations marked by pressures, threats, and successive blockages in the European Parliament. The Cypriot presidency of the Council, exercised during the first half of 2026, confirmed the breakthrough through the X social media platform and emphasized that the aim of the agreement is to “enhance a stable and predictable trade relationship” between the two blocs.
The pact, originally agreed last summer at the Turnberry golf complex in Scotland, owned by US President Donald Trump, during a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, establishes that the European Union will eliminate tariffs on a limited set of US agricultural products, including soy oil, will maintain zero tariffs on certain lobster varieties, and will reduce duties on cars arriving from the United States. In exchange, Washington has applied since the end of July 2025 a 15% tariff on most European products. Steel and aluminum products are excluded from the pact and remain subject to 50% tariffs under the Section 232 framework.
