Just two days after warning he would slap a 50% tariff on goods from the European Union, President Trump abruptly reversed course on Sunday, announcing a delay until July and saying that negotiations would begin “rapidly.” The announcement marked yet another high-profile retreat, prompting media outlets to mock the president for once again backing down after making a dramatic threat.
The proposed tariffs, which would have affected more than $600 billion in goods, sent a wave of anxiety through global markets late last week, raising fears that Trump was about to reignite a full-blown trade war with Europe. On Friday, he posted on Truth Social that the EU had been “very difficult to deal with” and declared that negotiations were “going nowhere!” He said he planned to recommend a tariff more than twice the rate of the one he imposed on “Liberation Day” in April an aggressive move he had already paused once just a week after announcing it.
But by Sunday evening, Trump appeared to shift gears following a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. She reportedly asked for a pause in escalation to allow room for further negotiations. Trump quickly agreed, posting, “[It] was my privilege to do so,” on Truth Social. Von der Leyen confirmed on X that the EU was “ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively.”
The about-face did not go unnoticed. Several media outlets pointed out that Trump’s tough talk on trade has often ended with little action. This latest episode was no exception. Headlines and commentators highlighted the pattern of threats followed by retreats, calling into question the administration’s consistency and resolve. Some outlets framed the delay as yet another example of Trump “caving under pressure” after setting off economic alarm bells.
Behind the scenes, the Financial Times reported Friday that the U.S. had been preparing to reject a proposed trade offer from the EU, instead demanding that European countries first make unilateral tariff cuts before any broader deal would be considered. Trump himself told reporters in the Oval Office that he was “not looking for a deal” with Europe at this time, adding more confusion to the administration’s already mixed messaging.
The European Union, meanwhile, is in the middle of a public consultation process reviewing its own potential list of tariffs on roughly $100 billion in U.S. exports. Those discussions and any retaliatory measures are now in limbo following Trump’s Sunday announcement. It remains to be seen whether the negotiations he promised will actually take place or simply become another part of the cycle of threats and backpedaling that has characterized much of his trade policy.