20 June 2018•Update: 20 June 2018
By Diyar Guldogan
ANKARA
The European Commission on Wednesday adopted a regulation putting in place EU's rebalancing measures in response to the U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminium.
"The measures will immediately target a list of products worth €2.8 billion [$3.2 billion] and will come into effect on Friday 22 June," the commission said in a statement.
It said the list of U.S. imports that will now face an extra duty at the EU border includes steel and aluminium products, agricultural goods and a combination of various other products.
"We did not want to be in this position. However, the unilateral and unjustified decision of the U.S. to impose steel and aluminium tariffs on the EU means that we are left with no other choice," Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmstrom said in the statement.
Malmstrom said the EU's response is "measured, proportionate" and fully in line with the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.
"Needless to say, if the U.S. removes its tariffs, our measures will also be removed," she added.
The U.S. announced that starting on June 1, 2018, it will impose additional duties of 25 percent and 10 percent respectively on imports of steel and aluminium from the EU.
According to the commission, the U.S. measures affect EU exports worth €6.4 billion ($7.4 billion) and of this amount, the EU will rebalance on €2.8 billion ($3.2 billion) worth of exports immediately.
