The European Union is putting its framework trade deal with the United States on hold as it assesses the fallout of a Supreme Court ruling that struck down many of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Following Friday’s ruling by the high court wiping out tariffs enacted under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, Trump signed an executive order imposing a fresh 10% global tariff. He later said he would raise that duty to 15%, but no official documentation of the hike has been published as of Monday morning.
In response, the EU said it requires “full clarity” on the actions the U.S. will take following the ruling, according to a European Commission statement on Saturday.
“The current situation is not conducive to delivering ‘fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial’ transatlantic trade and investment, as agreed to by both sides and spelled out in the EU-U.S. Joint Statement of August 2025,” the statement says.
Due to the lack of legal clarity, the European Parliament is pausing a planned vote on two legislative proposals enacting provisions of the agreement that was scheduled for Tuesday, Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament’s International Trade Committee, said in a post on X Monday.
Despite last week’s ruling, the European Commission said it “expects the U.S. to honour its commitments” from the framework trade agreement.
“A deal is a deal,” the commission’s statement says, demanding the U.S. not increase tariffs on EU countries by more than the 15% cap set forth in the framework deal. The cap also applies to specific sectors subject to higher U.S. tariffs under Section 232, including automobiles and lumber, as well as potential similar levies for goods such as pharmaceuticals.
Trump’s plan to raise his new global tariff to 15% would put it at the maximum level it can reach under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, the statute he is using to implement the levy.
However, it is unclear whether the new tariff would be in addition to levies agreed to as part of framework trade agreements the U.S. has sealed in the last year. Those pacts were largely made in response to tariffs Trump imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme Court has now invalidated.
The European Commission said it has been in contact with U.S. officials and “will continue to work towards lowering tariffs” in line with the joint agreement.
“The EU’s priority is to preserve a stable, predictable transatlantic trading environment, while also acting as a global anchor for rules-based trade,” the commission’s statement says.
This is the second time in as many months the EU has halted efforts to implement the framework deal with the U.S.
In January, the bloc voted to pause work on the pact due to Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on eight European countries that opposed his campaign to annex Greenland. Trump later walked back the threats after which the EU put the framework deal back on track.
