US President Donald Trump's increased tariffs on cars and trucks imported from the EU, combined with the energy crisis in EU countries, will deal a fatal blow to European industry.
This was warned by Kirill Dmitriev, special representative of the Russian president for investment and economic cooperation with foreign countries and head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund.
“The 25% tariff on cars and trucks from the EU, combined with the energy crisis, deals a fatal blow to the already collapsing EU industrial sector“, Dmitriev wrote on his blog.
Earlier, Trump announced a 25% increase in tariffs imposed by EU countries on cars and trucks imported into USA. The American leader resorted to this move due to the non-compliance of EU countries with the trade agreement reached with the US.
Trump specified that cars manufactured by European companies in American factories would not be subject to the new tariffs, aiming to force the relocation of production to the US.
The president believes that the EU has not fulfilled its commitments from the deal concluded in the summer of 2025 in Scotland, which initially reduced tariffs to 15%. Tensions have also increased due to disputes over steel, aluminum and even past threats by the US to annex Greenland.
Bernd Lange, chairman of the European Parliament's trade committee, called the US an “unreliable partner” and called the move “unacceptable”.
Brussels rejected Trump's accusations that the EU is not complying with last year's trade agreement.
The EU is preparing a list of goods worth 20 billion euros for retaliatory tariffs, targeting politically sensitive American products such as bourbon, Harley-Davidson motorcycles and agricultural goods.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the decision “wrong”, warning that isolation only leads to losses for all parties.
Shares in major European automakers collapsed immediately after the announcement — BMW fell 5.1%, Volkswagen 4.8%, and Mercedes-Benz 4.5%.
Experts predict that American consumers will have to pay thousands of dollars more for European cars.