From Italy to Australia, the first indignant reactions – Liberation

As soon as they are sent, extremely heavy customs duties imposed on Wednesday worldwide by President Donald Trump, the outraged reactions began to fall. Among the first to react, while he was already dawn at home, were the Australians, who nevertheless receive relatively modest prices, 10 %, compared to others.

Customs duties imposed by the American president are « Totally unjustified » And will modify Australia’s relationship with the United States, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday. « These customs duties are not unexpectedbut let’s be clear: they are completely unjustified ”said at a press conference after the announcement of customs duties of 10 %. « This will have consequences for the perception that Australians have of this relationship »he added. « A friend does not act in this way »he continued, while excluding the taxation of reciprocal prices against the United States.

On the European Union side, imposed at 20 %, one of the first reactions came from Italy, of which Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, is quite close to Donald Trump – she was the only European leader invited to her inauguration on January 20. These new American customs rights imposed on imports from the EU are a « Bad measure »she said in a press release. “The introduction by the United States of customs duties with regard to the EU is a measure that I consider to be bad and which is not suitable for any of the two parties. We will do our best to reach an agreement with the United States, in order to avoid a trade war that would inevitably weaken the West for the benefit of other world actors ”she added.

For his part, Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin said « Deeply regret » 20 % customs duties imposed by the United States and called the 27 to react in a way « Proportionate ». « Any action must be proportionate and aim to defend the interests of our businesses, our workers and our citizens »he said in a press release. Ireland, which welcomes European seats for large American tech or pharmaceutical sector groups, records the widest excess of EU members with the United States.

The German chemical industry, of which the United States is the first export market, has for its part « Displayed the decision of the United States government » and called the European Union to « Keep your head cool » stressing that « An escalation would only worsen the damage. » The VCI federation of chemistry represents industrial giants like Bayer or Basf.

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, was to speak Thursday at 5:00 am from Samarkand in Uzbekistan where she is on the move.

While the French official reaction was long overdue, Gabriel Picard, president of the Federation of Wine Exporters & Spirits of France (FEVS) estimated on BFM TV that French wines and spirits could fall by 20 % after the announcements of Donald Trump.

The United Kingdom, which is not imposed « only » 10 % of customs tariffs said they wish to conclude an agreement as quickly as possible with the United States to « mitigate » The impact of customs duties. « The United States being our closest ally, our approach is to remain calm and commit to concluding this agreement which, we hope, will reduce the impact of what has been announced today »British trade minister Jonathan Reynolds said on Wednesday evening. Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to speak Thursday morning.