"Auto tariff threat not mentioned in US talks"

International Live: US threats to put tariffs on European autos did not come up during talks this week with American trade officials in Washington, EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan said Thursday.

Hogan’s remarks came hours after Germany’s defense minister confirmed a media report that Washington had threatened 25 percent duties on autos, demanding that three EU nations increase pressure on Iran.

“It was not mentioned, it was hardly mentioned,” Hogan told reporters in Washington. “I think it should be good news for Germany.” Germany, France and Britain this week formally accused Iran of breaching a multilateral 2015 nuclear pact, a week after US President Donald Trump secretly demanded that they do so, brandishing the threat of auto tariffs if they did not, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

Tehran resumed parts of its nuclear program after Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal in 2018. Earlier Thursday, German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said during a news conference that the “threat… does exist.”

“But at least there’s an opinion expressed in relation to the proposal,” Hogan said, adding that Brussels was now waiting for a Trump counter-offer. “What we share is an objective of having a comprehensive outcome in relation to civil aviation,” he said.

Agriculture is still a principal stumbling block, according to Hogan. But he said Europeans had made good on commitments to increase imports of US soybeans and corn. “At the request of the United States, we delivered,” he said, even on the “very sensitive issue” of agriculture,” Hogan said.

Dhaka 17 January (campuslive24.com)//az

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