Trump names $ 600 billion “gift” of the EU

According to its President Donald Trump, the $ 600 billion in investments promised by the EU as part of the customs deal with the USA with the USA are free. “You gave us $ 600 billion that we can invest in everything we want,” he said in a conversation with the broadcaster CNBC.

Trump described the sum as a “gift”, which was not a loan and therefore did not have to be repaid in three years. This contradicts the previous information from the EU Commission. In the coming years, companies from the EU want to invest $ 600 billion in the United States. According to the EU Commission, it has so far been an expression of interests of companies.

When asked what happens if the EU does not deliver the investments in question, Trump threatened tariffs of 35 percent – but it remained unclear when the case of a breach of the contract would occur, since the investments were interpreted for several years.

A commission officer recently made it clear that the investments were a matter for private companies – the Commission as a public authority could not guarantee this. The Commission did not say which companies would have expressed investment intentions and to what extent.

The EU and the United States had recently reached an agreement in the customs dispute. The Agreement between Trump and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen provides for a dial of 15 percent for most EU imports to the USA. August 7th is the new start date. In addition to the $ 600 billion, the EU Trump had guaranteed that it wanted to buy US energy worth $ 750 billion by the end of its term.