US President Donald Trump issued a warning Friday, vowing to impose tariffs and launch a formal trade investigation against the European Union over Brussels’ recent antitrust penalty targeting Google.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump expressed that the EU “will face a very heavy price for this illegal and highly unethical conduct, which I have repeatedly warned them about.” He stated he would “immediately begin a 301 Investigation” into what he described as the EU’s practice of “robbing” American companies, and predicted a “significant TARIFF” on the bloc “at the earliest possible moment.”
“The United States of America is not a piggy bank for Europe, and we will not allow it to be,” he declared.
Under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, Washington has the authority to examine foreign practices deemed discriminatory and respond with tariffs.
The European Commission recently fined Google 890 million euros ($1 billion) for violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the bloc’s pioneering legislation regulating the conduct of large online platforms. This was the first fine levied on Google under this law.
The commission announced two separate penalties: a 460-million-euro fine for favoring Google’s own shopping, hotel, transport, and sports services in search results, and a 430-million-euro fine for implementing restrictions that prevented app developers from guiding users toward cheaper options outside the Google Play store.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer criticized the decision Thursday, arguing that the EU’s enforcement undermines “constructive dialogue” and risks destabilizing transatlantic trade relations.
This dispute challenges the trade framework established last year between Washington and Brussels, which involved lowering U.S. duties on European cars in exchange for concessions from the EU.
EU officials maintain that their digital regulations are not targeting American companies.