President Trump blasted European regulation and trade policies in a video appearance on Thursday at the World Economic Forum, pledging to slap tariffs on companies that choose to produce outside of the United States.
For months, Europe has been bracing for possible trade restrictions under a new Trump administration. But while Mr. Trump pledged across-the-board tariffs during the campaign, many economists and analysts have viewed those threats as more of a bargaining chip than a concrete plan.
But for now, the new president doubled down on Thursday.
Speaking to corporate global executives and politicians gathered at the forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Mr. Trump renewed his pledge to quickly end the war in Ukraine and called for more European military spending. But high on his list of complaints was what he called “unfair” European trading practices.
“They don’t take our farm — essentially don’t take our farm products,” he said. “And they don’t take our cars” and “make it very difficult to bring products into Europe,” he added. (Europe does import both farm products and cars from the United States, though not as much as it exports.)
“We have, you know, hundreds of millions of dollars of deficits with the E.U., and nobody’s happy with it,” Mr. Trump said of the European Union. “We’re going to do something about it.”
Mr. Trump did not specify what “something” might entail. But at another point in the speech he renewed his promise for across-the-board tariffs.
“If you don’t make your product in America, which is your prerogative, then, very simply, you will have to pay a tariff,” he said, after pledging low taxes for businesses that do produce in the United States. “Differing amounts, but a tariff.”
The president’s comments came as European politicians and officials have been scrambling behind the scenes to prepare for what Mr. Trump might do, while expressing a willingness to make a deal.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, the E.U.’s executive branch, said during a speech at Davos earlier this week that “our first priority will be to engage early, discuss common interests, and be ready to negotiate.”
Many European officials have struck a conciliatory tone toward Mr. Trump. Alexander de Croo, the prime minister of Belgium, said in an interview on Wednesday that Europe needs to show “sympathy” for some of his core concerns. He said that maybe there were ways to address the trade balance with the U.S., including by buying more American liquid natural gas — something Mr. Trump has repeatedly insisted upon.
But European officials have also emphasized that they will protect their interests.
Teresa Ribera, an executive vice president at the commission, said in an interview at Davos that there may be more room for Europe to buy American gas as European countries try to replace their dependence on Russian supplies. But she added that it is important “to ensure that we do not exchange a dependency for a new one.”
Mr. Trump’s policy toward Ukraine is another major question hanging over Europe. He has at times talked about quickly ending American support for its war with Russia, but there is concern — in Ukraine and among other European leaders — that too hasty of an exit would be a problem.
“The quickest way of ending a war is to lose a war — but that wouldn’t bring peace, that would bring occupation,” Jens Stoltenberg, who was until recently the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, said during an interview this week.
Mark Rutte, the new head of NATO, said it was necessary for the alliance to “step up and not scale back the support for Ukraine.”
Mr. Trump on Thursday said without much elaboration that “Ukraine is ready to make a deal” to end its war with Russia. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, has called for a “just end” to the fighting but has expressed some challenging conditions, like NATO membership for his country. There is no indication that Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, is ready to end the war.
Mr. Trump also renewed his call for Europe to spend more on its own defense — arguing that NATO members should increase expenditures to 5 percent of gross domestic product, from around 2 percent now.
While European leaders widely agree that military spending needs to increase, such a big step would not be realistic, some leaders have said.
Ana Swanson and Steven Erlanger contributed reporting.
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