For the second time this week, President Trump threatened to disrupt trade with a close ally because he was in a trade war that he began – a tactic that could lead to compromises, or on economic spades that continue to be out of control.
On Thursday morning, Mr. Trump tried to fight the European Union and threatened to give a tariff of 200 percent on European wine and champagne in a social media post, unless the block set US whiskey by a tariff of 50 percent. The European Union imposed this tariff in response to taxes, which Mr. Trump prompted global steel and aluminum on Wednesday.
Mr. Trump used a similar tactic against Canada on Tuesday and threatened to double 25 percent tariffs to Canadian steel and aluminum to try to increase ontario a surcharge for electricity that is sold to the USA. The province had raised the indictment after Mr. Trump had raised other tariffs on Canada this month.
After Ontario had suspended his contract, Mr. Trump went back his threats.
In the past few weeks, Mr. Trump has shown a confusing and potentially economically devastating tariffs and tariff threats before it and played a global chicken game, while trying to retreat some of the committed allies of the United States and trading partners.
Mr. Trump has led the tariff threats regardless of their economic consequences and apparently apparently regardless of the effects on the stock markets. The S&P 500 put together again on Thursday after Mr. Trump threatened Europe and repeated in the White House that he would impose great tariffs.
When asked whether he could give in to Canada, which sent a delegation to the United States on Thursday to try to calm the trade voltages, said Mr. Trump: “I will not bow at all.”
He said that the United States do not need imports such as wood and energy from Canada, one of the largest trading partners in America. “We don't need anything you have,” he said.
The President, who spoke to reporters during a meeting with Mark Rutte, General Secretary of the North Atlantic Contract Organization, admitted that his tariffs could lead to a “small disorder”, said that “it won't be very long”.
“And we have to do that,” he said. “I'm sorry, we have to do that.”
The finance minister Scott Bessent asked on Thursday about market volatility and the economic effects of tariffs that the White House was not “concerned about the short -term”.
“We have strategic industries that we have to have,” said Bessent. “We want to protect the American worker.”
Minister of Commerce Howard Lutnick also warned other countries about the retaliation of the United States and said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Thursday that Mr. Trump could react spiritedly.
“If you make him unhappily, he replies unhappily,” said Lutnick.
Mr. Lutnick said that some countries such as Great Britain and Mexico had thoughtfully examined how they did business with the United States. But for countries that react with other tariffs, “the president will deal with strength and power,” he threatened.
It remains to be seen whether other countries will take revenge with their own taxes and how many economic disagreements can lead to real trade wars in the Tit-for-Tat wars. Mr. Trump promised more taxes for cars and other products in April.
Some governments, such as in Australia, Brazil, Great Britain, Japan and Mexico, have decided not to reciprocate for the time being, as they are trying to defuse other ways with Mr. Trump. But China, the European Union and Canada, have carried out all different calculations.
These governments can be encouraged by domestic political constituencies to choose the bullying of Mr. Trump or in the case of Europe and China.
Some European officials said they would not bow to the pressure. In a statement on Wednesday, Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, said the block of the block that Europe had to act in order to protect consumers and business authorities and that it would require “strong but proportional” countermeasures.
“We will not give in to the threats,” said Laurent Saint-Martin, France's Foreign Minister, in a post on X. Mr. Trump “escalates the trade war he unleashed,” he added.
The Canadian officials were generally also pronounced against the United States, a dynamic that can be reinforced by a political transition and an upcoming federal election in Canada.
“If you meet us, we will strike back,” said Chrystia Freeland, a former Minister of Finance for Canadian, in an interview on CNN on Thursday. Ms. Freeland said that Canada was small, but that it had a leverage in the economic relationship because it was by far the largest export market for the United States.
“Canada is a more important export market for the United States as China, Japan, Great Britain and France,” she said. “You are the country that invented the expression” The customer is always right “. Well, we are your biggest customer.”
Mr. Trump may play the idea that other countries are more dependent on the US market than in the United States. Canada sends around 80 percent of his exports to the United States, while around 17 percent of US exports go to Canada.
But the European Union and China are less distant and are less dependent on American buyers. The United States is the goal for around 20 percent of the EU exports and about 15 percent of Chinese exports.
On Thursday, Canada initiated a dispute at the world trade organization about the steel and aluminum tariffs, which Mr. Trump had imposed the day before. China initiated a lawsuit about a separate tranche of tariffs last month. However, the WTO challenges are largely a symbolic gesture, since the United States hindered the organization's dispute resolution system in the first term of office of Mr. Trump.
Canadian officials were expected to meet Mr. Lutnick to discuss trade questions on Thursday. A European spokesman said that Maros Sefcovic, the trade commissioner of the European Union, will speak to Mr. Lutnick and Jamieson Greer, the US trade representative, on Friday.
Jeanna Smilek and Matina Stevis-Gridneff have contributed to the reporting.