European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic said on Thursday that he will speak to his counterparts in the United States tomorrow after US President Donald Trump imposed a 20% tariff on exports from the European Union. He also confirmed the EU will respond to the measure "in a calm, carefully phased, unified way" while continuing to look for a negotiated solution.

"But we won't stand idly by, should we be unable to reach a fair deal," Sefcovic added, warning the US that "unjustified tariffs inevitably backfire."