EU avoids tariff threats as it reaches consensus on trade deal with US

The European Union is finally ready to implement the trade deal it struck with the United States almost a year ago, heading off a slew of new tariffs that Washington had threatened to introduce on July 4.

The breakthrough came early on Wednesday, after five hours of talks, when EU lawmakers and member states struck a compromise among factions in the bloc that dislike the deal and factions that feel they can agree on a way forward.

The EU-US trade deal, which was agreed upon by US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Scotland on July 27, calls for 15 percent import taxes to be levied on most imports into the US from the 27-nation bloc, while a zero percent tariff will be applied to US exports to the EU.

The deal, which many EU lawmakers saw as lopsided, has since sat in the EU Parliament awaiting implementation, while lawmakers haggled over possibly amending it. It was also held up by EU lawmakers protesting against US plans to take control of Greenland.

Michael Damianos, minister of energy, commerce and industry in Cyprus, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, said the compromise reached on Wednesday shows the bloc "delivers on its commitments".

"Maintaining a stable, predictable, and balanced trans-Atlantic partnership is in the interest of both sides," he added.

Trump had earlier said that if the trade deal was not ratified by July 4, he would increase tariffs on EU vehicles from 15 percent to 25 percent and also bring in other "much higher" tariffs.

His introduction of tariffs, both real and threatened, especially on aluminum, steel, and auto parts, has pushed the EU to find new trading partners elsewhere. But the bloc has also been careful not to jeopardize bilateral trade with the US, its largest trading partner, which amounts to around 1.6 trillion euros ($1.9 trillion) a year.

Bernd Lange, the chair of the parliament's trade committee, helped bridge the gap between the disparate EU factions on Wednesday and said that while the EU will abandon some proposed amendments, "parliament has prevailed with its demands for a comprehensive safety net".

"There is a suspension mechanism if the US does not abide by the deal, a monitoring mechanism for (measuring) the impact on our economy, provisions for unjustified tariffs on certain products, an expiration date for the legislation, and strong involvement of the European Parliament," he said, summarizing the compromise.

Von der Leyen said it means "we will soon deliver on our part", with the EU-US trade deal set to be formally implemented soon.

"Together, we can ensure stable, predictable, balanced, and mutually beneficial trans-Atlantic trade," she added.