French PM urges EU to ease whiskey tariffs amid Trump threat
French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said the European Union might have mistakenly targeted American whiskey in response to the USA's tariffs. Bayrou called for talks to avoid more harmful tariffs that could affect the French cognac industry.
According to Reuters, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to impose a 200-percent tariff on all wines and other alcoholic products from the EU if the Union does not drop the planned tax on American bourbon.
Bayrou noted that "certain mistakes were made" because Kentucky bourbon was included as if it posed a trade threat, referring to the tariffs proposed by the EU in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.
In a Sunday interview on "France Inter" radio, the French Prime Minister said that "an ancient list of products was reinstated without proper verification."
He believes the European Union might have made a mistake by targeting American whiskey.
Reuters points out that Trump's threat regarding European wines and alcoholic beverages has caused concern among European producers who rely on exports. These include French cognac producers, who have already been affected by tariffs imposed by Beijing in a separate dispute over EU tariffs on Chinese electric cars.
