Commenting on the results of the Trump-Juncker meeting on his Twitter page, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas underscored that he perceives the US as "not an enemy," but as "our most important partner and ally outside the EU."
At the same time, he warned that "we need to hold the EU together and confidently defend ourselves against punitive tariffs," which were earlier introduced by the US President.
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"We have to set limits to Trump's method. He has to see that he cannot split Europe," Maas emphasized.
His remarks came after Trump said that during his talks with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker in Washington on Wednesday, the two sides "agreed, first of all, to work together towards zero tariffs, zero non-tariff barriers, and zero subsidies on non-auto industrial goods."
Additionally, the US and the EU will cooperate so as "to reduce barriers and increase trade in services, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, medical products, as well as soybeans," according to Trump.
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"This was a very big day for free and fair trade. We set out to launch a new phase of close friendship between the United States and the European Union; strong trade relationships where both of us will win", he stressed, referring to the Wednesday talks.
The statement came as Trump took to Twitter to announce that the EU and the US "love each other."
Obviously the European Union, as represented by @JunckerEU and the United States, as represented by yours truly, love each other! pic.twitter.com/42ImacgCN0
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 25 июля 2018 г.
He was echoed by Juncker, who said that he "had the intention to make a deal today and we made a deal today," a document which he said stipulates that the EU will build more terminals to import liquefied natural gas, or LNG.
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French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, in turn, welcomed EU trade discussions with Washington, stressing that "any trade deal must be based on reciprocity."
Earlier, Trump rejected criticism over his decision to impose tariffs against US allies, tweeting that the "end result will be worth it."
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Every time I see a weak politician asking to stop trade talks or the use of tariffs to counter unfair tariffs, I wonder, what can they be thinking? Are we just going to continue and let our farmers and country get ripped off?" he wrote on his Twitter page.
On Wednesday, EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom warning that if Washington finally decides to impose duties on European cars, the EU Commission will introduce tariffs on US goods worth at least 20 billion dollars (about 17 billion euros).
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In June, Brussels slapped tariffs on iconic US goods, such as Harley-Davidson motorcycles, jeans and whiskey, worth $3.3 billion, in retaliation following Trump's decision to introduce 25 percent tariffs on steel imports and 10 percent duties on aluminum. The tit-for-tat moves have prompted speculation that a full-fledged global trade war is already looming.
