European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will have the “full backing” of the European Union as he works out a reasonable trade deal with President Donald Trump, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair told CNBC on Wednesday.
Trump on Wednesday secured concessions from Europe, averting a trade war, Dow Jones reported, citing a European Union official. The news came shortly before Trump and Juncker held a joint news conference.
“The important thing to understand about Europe is it’s a huge market, does immense amount of trade with America. It’s very important it protects that market but he will have the full backing of the European Union in taking a reasonable but still tough stand. And he’ll want to make sure he’s representing European interests properly,” Blair said in an interview with “Closing Bell.” Blair spoke shortly before the report of possible concessions by the EU.
Earlier in the day, Trump said he “hoped to work something out on a fair trade deal with Europe.”
Tensions have been escalating between the U.S. and the European Union. After the Trump administration slapped tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from Europe, the EU responded by imposing $3.3 billion worth of tariffs on U.S. goods.
Trump has also threatened to hit autos imported from the EU with tariffs. On Wednesday, The Washington Post reported that Trump plans to implement a 25 percent levy on about $200 billion in foreign-made cars this year. However, Sens. Doug Jones, D-Ala., and Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., are pushing back. On Wednesday, they introduced a bill intended to delay those auto tariffs.
Trump’s comments on Wednesday were a sharp contrast to earlier statements.
“The European Union — outside of China and a couple of others — treats us, on trade, as badly as you can be treated,” Trump said during a May visit from NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
— CNBC’s Christina Wilke contributed to this report.
