WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the U.S. and the European Union would "resolve" both the hefty tariffs the U.S. had placed on imports of steel and aluminum from the EU and the tariffs Europe had slapped on U.S. goods in response.
It was not clear whether the two sides made any progress on the contentious issue of possible U.S. tariffs on imports of automobiles from Europe, but European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said they had agreed not to impose any new tariffs while talks were taking place.
Speaking with Juncker at his side, Trump said they had agreed in talks to "work together toward zero tariffs, zero non-tariff barriers, and zero subsidies on non-auto industrial goods."
"We are starting the negotiation right now but we know very much where it's going," Trump said.
"This was a very big day for free and fair trade, a very big day indeed," Trump told reporters at the White House after meeting with Juncker. "We are starting the negotiation right now but we know very much where it's going," Trump said.
Juncker said, "This was a good and constructive meeting.”
Trump has threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on auto imports, a move that would hit European carmakers like BMW and Volkswagen hard, as well as Japanese and South Korean car companies.
Juncker confirmed in remarks before the Center for Strategic and International Studies that no other tariffs, including ones on autos, would be imposed by either side as long as the talks continued.
The EU shares with Trump concerns about global overcapacity in steel created by China, illegal government subsidies and forced technology transfers, he said.
“We agree the rules as they currently stand need to be updated to deal with challenges of our time. But the only way to address these challenges is to rewrite the rules together, not rip it up alone,” Juncker said.
German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier on Wednesday said Trump and the EU had achieved a "breakthrough" in trade talks that would help avoid a trade war and save millions of jobs.
"Congrats to @JunckerEU, @realDonaldTrump: Breakthrough achieved that can avoid trade war & save millions of jobs! Great for global economy!" Altmaier said in a posting on Twitter.
Eric Kulisch contributed to this report.