Trump-Von der Leyen Handshake Deal Reveals Tough Terms for Europe

The trade deal announced by Donald Trump and Ursula von der Leyen at a Scottish golf resort has now been detailed, revealing tough terms that place the burden of action squarely on the European Union. While the initial announcement on July 27 was framed as a mutual step forward, the fine print shows a clear US-led strategy of conditional relief.
The core of the agreement is the US offer to reduce its 27.5% tariff on EU cars, a major threat to the European economy. However, the details published Thursday confirm this is not an automatic step. The EU must first introduce legislation to eliminate its own tariffs on US industrial goods and improve market access for American agricultural products.
This “you first” approach has been met with dismay in some European capitals, with French officials decrying it as a “submission.” It demonstrates a negotiating strategy where US tariffs are used as powerful leverage to extract concessions and dictate the timeline of the agreement’s implementation.
The joint statement makes the conditionality crystal clear, specifying that US tariffs will be lowered “from the first day of the same month in which the European Union’s legislative proposal is introduced.” This transforms the high-level handshake at Turnberry into a concrete set of marching orders for lawmakers in Brussels.