BRUSSELS (Chatnewstv.com) — The European Union took a major step toward restoring predictability in transatlantic trade on Thursday, adopting negotiating mandates for two regulations that would implement tariff-related commitments under the EU-US Joint Statement agreed in August 2025.
The package includes one regulation adjusting customs duties and granting tariff-rate quotas for U.S. industrial, seafood and agricultural products, and a second extending the EU’s suspension of duties on live, frozen and now processed lobster.
EU officials said the measures are meant to solidify a fragile detente in trade relations with Washington. “This is about delivering on our commitments and ensuring stability in one of the world’s most important economic partnerships,” a Council representative said.
Under the first regulation, the EU would eliminate remaining customs duties on U.S. industrial goods and open preferential market access — including tariff-rate quotas and lowered tariffs — for selected seafood and non-sensitive agricultural products. While broadly endorsing the European Commission’s proposal, the Council added safeguards to protect vulnerable EU industries.
The mandate instructs the Commission to “continuously monitor the economic effects” of the liberalization measures and to submit a detailed report on their impact to the European Parliament and the Council by Dec. 31, 2028. It also strengthens a bilateral safeguard mechanism allowing the EU to intervene if rising imports cause “serious injury” to domestic producers.
The Council also clarified rules-of-origin provisions, which it said will help ease implementation and reduce administrative disputes.
The second regulation maintains the EU’s suspension of customs duties on certain types of live and frozen lobster — a measure first introduced in December 2020 for a five-year period — and expands it to include processed lobster products. The Council backed the Commission’s proposal without amendments.
With the mandates approved, the Council can begin negotiations with the European Parliament in hopes of reaching a final deal on both texts.
The EU and the United States anchor the world’s largest bilateral trade and investment partnership, accounting for nearly 30% of global trade and 43% of global GDP. Transatlantic trade in goods and services doubled over the past decade, reaching €1.7 trillion in 2024, while mutual investment exceeded €4.7 trillion in 2023.
The regulations form the EU’s response to the commitments made in the August 2025 joint statement, which outlined reciprocal tariff adjustments designed to ease long-running tensions. As part of that framework, the U.S. administration issued executive orders applying a 15% “all-inclusive” tariff ceiling, reducing Section 232 duties on EU cars and car parts, exempting key EU exports such as aircraft components and generic pharmaceuticals, and imposing 15% tariffs on timber and related products.
