President Donald Trump has issued a formal warning to the European Union, threatening to impose “substantial” new tariffs in retaliation for recent fines levied against American technology corporations. The president accused Brussels of taking “direct aim” at major firms, specifically naming Apple, Meta Platforms, Amazon, and Google. In a statement posted to Truth Social on Friday, Trump declared that the United States would not serve as a “PIGGYBANK” for Europe.
The administration plans to launch an immediate investigation into what the president described as the European Union’s practice of “ROBBING” American companies and taxpayers. Trump asserted that the EU will be forced to “pay a very big price” for its regulatory actions. This announcement arrived just one day after the Trump administration implemented a broad series of tariffs affecting more than 80 countries, including those within the European Union. These global measures, which include a 10% levy on the EU, were framed by the president as a necessary step to address what he claims are unfair labor practices and to bolster domestic manufacturing and employment.
Google, which was recently hit with an €890m fine by EU regulators, welcomed the president’s intervention. Jose Castaneda, a spokesperson for Google, stated that the company had worked diligently to comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act. Castaneda expressed the company's concerns regarding the impact of recent European Commission decisions and noted, “We appreciate the engagement by the administration and U.S. government.”
Trump has frequently utilized the threat of tariffs as a tool for geopolitical leverage beyond traditional trade policy. For instance, he previously threatened import taxes on goods from Mexico and Canada to secure cooperation on border security issues. While the European Union’s crackdown on large digital media companies through the Digital Markets Act predates the current administration, the policy remains a significant point of contention as the US government signals a more aggressive approach to protecting its domestic tech sector.
