EU states sign off on deal to implement US trade pact

BRUSSELS

The EU's 27 member states Wednesday formally approved a compromise with the European Parliament to implement a trade deal with the United States, which now needs only a final sign off from lawmakers to enter into force.

The accord struck last July caps US levies on most European goods at 15 percent, but to President Donald Trump's frustration the bloc had yet to make good on its pledge to scrap levies on most American imports in return.

But a compromise negotiated between EU capitals and lawmakers last week put the bloc on track to meet Trump's July 4 deadline to implement the deal or face punitive new levies.

Diplomats meeting in Brussels formally approved the text, which lawmakers are to officially back when they meet in Strasbourg in mid-June.

The compromise attached safeguards to the removal of EU tariffs -- should the United States renege on its commitments.

But they were scaled back from lawmakers' initial demands to avoid rekindling tensions with the White House. A so-called "sunset" clause for the deal's expiry was notably pushed to the end of 2029, after Trump's term ends.

The text also gave the United States until the end of the year to drop extra taxes above 15 percent on steel components, rather than making it a precondition as parliament wanted.

A so-called "sunrise" clause under which the EU side of the accord would kick in only once the US makes good on its pledges -- was dropped.

Parliament, which considers the trade deal unfavourable to the EU, had suspended the ratification process several times, notably over Trump's threats this year to seize Greenland.

But the European Commission has defended the tariff pact throughout, citing the need to preserve relations with the EU's largest trading partner.