Trump Makes Major Tariff Announcement with Mexico and the European Union [WATCH]

President Donald Trump announced Saturday that his administration will implement a 30% tariff on imported goods from Mexico and European Union (EU) member states beginning August 1, citing trade imbalances and national security threats tied to cartel activity and economic policies.

The announcement was made through two formal letters posted to Truth Social.

President Trump stated that these new tariffs would be “separate from all Sectoral Tariffs” already in effect and would apply to goods entering the United States directly or through transshipment attempts to avoid penalties.

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In his letter to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, Trump explained that the decision was driven by what he characterized as Mexico’s insufficient progress in combating the operations of drug cartels and fentanyl trafficking across North America.

“Mexico has been helping me secure the border, BUT, what Mexico has done, is not enough,” Trump wrote.

“Mexico still has not stopped the Cartels who are trying to turn all of North America into a Narco-Trafficking Playgorund. Obviously, I cannot let that happen!”

Trump stated that the tariff on Mexican goods would increase from the previously announced 25% to 30% starting August 1, 2025.

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“Starting August 1, 2025, we will charge Mexico a Tariff of 30% on Mexican products sent into the United States, separate from all Sectoral tariffs,” Trump wrote.

“Goods transshipped to evade higher Tariffs will be subject to that higher Tariff.”

#AHORA Trump decreta 30% de aranceles a México pic.twitter.com/8boYTU6kbY

— Pascal (@beltrandelrio) July 12, 2025

In a second letter addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Trump pointed to the EU’s trade practices as the cause of what he described as “large and unsustainable Trade Deficits” with the United States.

He described the imbalance as a threat to national security and stated that the administration had reached its conclusion after years of dialogue.

“We have had years to discuss our Trading Relationship with The European Union, and have concluded that we must move away from these long-term, large, and persistent Trade Deficits, engendered by your Tariff, and Non-Tariff, Policies and Trade Barriers,” Trump wrote.

He added that if either the EU or Mexico responded with retaliatory tariffs, his administration would increase the rate accordingly.

“Whatever the number you chose to raise them by, will be added onto the 30% that we charge,” Trump stated.

EU under @vonderleyen:⁰30% tariffs from + sky-high energy costs + suffocating bureaucracy = deindustrialisation & decline.
Add in:⁰ Uncontrolled immigration⁰ Censorship⁰ Weak capital markets⁰ Record youth unemployment

EU bureaucracy undermines EU competitiveness pic.twitter.com/VbXnUBknF6

— Kirill A. Dmitriev (@kadmitriev) July 12, 2025

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen responded in a statement posted to X, saying, “A 30% tariff on EU exports would hurt businesses, consumers and patients on both sides of the Atlantic.”

She added that negotiations would continue and that the EU is “ready to safeguard EU interests on the basis of proportionate countermeasures.”

A 30% tariff on EU exports would hurt businesses, consumers and patients on both sides of the Atlantic.

We will continue working towards an agreement by August 1.

At the same time, we are ready to safeguard EU interests on the basis of proportionate countermeasures.

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) July 12, 2025

Von der Leyen also issued a broader statement on the EU’s position regarding trade with the U.S., saying the European Union would “continue to deepen global partnerships firmly anchored in the principles of rules-based international trade.”

“Few economies in the world match the European Union’s level of openness and adherence to fair trading practices,” the statement read.

“The EU has consistently prioritized a negotiated solution with the U.S., reflecting our commitment to dialogue, stability, and a constructive transatlantic partnership.”

French President Emmanuel Macron issued a separate response on Saturday through his official account on X, saying France “shares the same very strong disapproval at the announcement.”

Macron stated that the European Commission must act to protect the EU’s interests and called for an acceleration of preparations for countermeasures.

“With European unity, it is more than ever up to the Commission to assert the Union’s determination to resolutely defend European interests.

In particular, this implies speeding up the preparation of credible countermeasures, by mobilising all the instruments at its disposal, including anti-coercion, if no agreement is reached by August 1st,” Macron wrote.

Along with the President of the European Commission, France shares the same very strong disapproval at the announcement of horizontal 30% tariffs on EU exports to the United States from August 1st.

This announcement comes after weeks of intense engagement by the Commission in…

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) July 12, 2025

According to 2025 trade data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Mexico currently holds the position as the top trading partner of the United States. Several EU countries — including Germany, Italy, France, and the Netherlands — also remain among the top 15.

With this latest directive, President Trump has now imposed or proposed tariff measures affecting more than two dozen countries and the entire 27-member European Union.

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