President Donald Trump and European leaders pulled back from the brink of a trade war over autos Wednesday and agreed to open talks to tear down trade barriers between the United States and the European Union.

But the agreement was vague, the coming negotiations with Europe are sure to be contentious and the United States remains embroiled in major trade disputes with China and other trading partners.

In a hastily called Rose Garden appearance with Trump, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the U.S. and the EU have agreed to hold off on new tariffs, suggesting that the United States will suspend plans to start taxing European auto imports — a move that would have marked a major escalation in trade tensions between the allies.

Trump also said the EU had agreed to buy "a lot of soybeans" and increase its imports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S. And the two agreed to resolve an ongoing dispute over U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.

"It's encouraging that they're talking about freer trade rather than trade barriers and an escalating tariff war," said Rufus Yerxa, president of the National Foreign Trade Council and a former U.S. trade official. But he said reaching a detailed trade agreement with the EU would likely prove difficult.

At least the tone was friendlier than it has been. During a recent European trip, Trump referred to the EU as a "foe, what they do to us in trade." Juncker, after Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, said in March that "this is basically a stupid process, the fact that we have to do this. But we have to do it. We can also do stupid."

On Wednesday, Trump and Juncker said they have agreed to work toward "zero tariffs" and "zero subsidies" on non-automotive goods.

Trump told reporters it was a "very big day for free and fair trade."

The president campaigned on a vow to get tough on trading partners he accuses of taking advantage of bad trade deals to run up huge trade surpluses with the United States.

He has slapped taxes on imported steel and aluminum, saying they pose a threat to U.S. national security. The U.S. and EU are now working to resolve their differences over steel and aluminum — but the tariffs are still in place. And they would continue to hit U.S. trading partners like Canada, Mexico and Japan even if the U.S. and the EU cut a deal.

Whatever progress was achieved Wednesday could provide some relief for U.S. automakers. The escalating trade war and tariffs on steel and aluminum had put pressure on auto company earnings. General Motors had slashed its outlook, and shares of Ford Motor Co. and auto parts companies had fallen.

"Our biggest exposure, our biggest unmitigated exposure, is really steel and aluminum when you look at all of the commodities," GM CEO Mary Barra said Wednesday. "And frankly, the biggest driver of that is steel."

Trump has also imposed tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports — a figure he has threatened to raise to $500 billion — in a dispute over Beijing's aggressive drive to supplant U.S. technological dominance.

China has counterpunched with tariffs on American products, including soybeans and pork — a shot at Trump supporters in the U.S. heartland.

The EU is stepping in to ease some of U.S. farmers' pain. Juncker said the EU "can import more soybeans from the U.S., and it will be done."

Mary Lovely, a Syracuse University economist who studies trade, said, "The Chinese are not going to be buying our soybeans, so almost by musical chairs our soybeans are going to Europe." The trouble is, China last year imported $12.3 billion in U.S. soybeans, the EU just $1.6 billion.

Trump's progress with EU leaders was greeted by farm-state lawmakers who have been concerned about the impact of retaliatory tariffs on soybeans and other crops.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said what farmers in his home state need "and this might be helpful in this direction— is they got to know that this thing isn't going to go on forever."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., tweeted that the agreement "not to impose additional tariffs during negotiations is very smart and the best way to achieve a win-win solution."

He added: "Now is the time for EU and US - both victims to unfair China trade practices - to unite against China."

The White House announcement came as the Trump administration announced a final rule aimed at speeding up approval of applications for small-scale exports of liquefied natural gas. The Trump administration has made LNG exports a priority, arguing that they help the economy and enhance geopolitical stability in countries that purchase U.S. gas.

Juncker said the two sides also agreed to work together to reform the World Trade Organization, which Trump has vehemently criticized as being unfair to the U.S.

The biggest news from the Trump-Juncker meeting is that it appears to have delayed an impending trade war over autos. Trump has threatened to tax imported cars, trucks and auto parts, potentially targeting imports that last year totaled $335 billion.

The European Union had warned that it would retaliate with tariffs on products worth $20 billion if Trump puts duties on cars and auto parts from Europe.

But the auto trade war with Europe is on hold while the U.S. and EU engage in further trade talks. Daniel Ikenson, director of trade studies at the libertarian Cato Institute, warned that the fight over autos could quickly flare up again if Trump grows impatient with Europe.

"Auto tariffs are looming unless the EU buys more U.S. stuff and does other things Trump demands," he said.

Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro, Christopher Rugaber, Darlene Superville, Matthew Daly and Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this story.

On Twitter, follow Ken Thomas at https://twitter.com/KThomasDC and Paul Wiseman at https://twitter.com/PaulWisemanAP </s> WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and European leaders pulled back from the brink of a trade war over autos Wednesday and agreed to open talks to tear down trade barriers between the United States and the European Union.

But the agreement was vague, the coming negotiations with Europe are sure to be contentious and the United States remains embroiled in major trade disputes with China and other trading partners.

In a hastily called Rose Garden appearance with Trump, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the U.S. and the EU have agreed to hold off on new tariffs, suggesting that the United States will suspend plans to start taxing European auto imports — a move that would have marked a major escalation in trade tensions between the allies.

Trump also said the EU had agreed to buy “a lot of soybeans” and increase its imports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S. And the two agreed to resolve a dispute over U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.

“It’s encouraging that they’re talking about freer trade rather than trade barriers and an escalating tariff war,” said Rufus Yerxa, president of the National Foreign Trade Council and a former U.S. trade official. But he said reaching a detailed trade agreement with the EU would likely prove difficult.

President Donald Trump says the US and the EU have agreed to work toward “zero tariffs” and “zero subsidies” on non-automobile goods. EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says he has made a deal with Trump to try to ease trade tensions. (July 25)

The tone was friendlier than it has been. During a recent European trip, Trump referred to the EU as a “foe, what they do to us in trade.” Juncker, after Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, said in March that “this is basically a stupid process, the fact that we have to do this. But we have to do it. We can also do stupid.”

On Wednesday, Trump and Juncker said they have agreed to work toward “zero tariffs” and “zero subsidies” on non-automotive goods.

Trump told reporters it was a “very big day for free and fair trade” and later tweeted a photo of himself and Juncker in an embrace, with Juncker kissing his cheek.

“Obviously the European Union, as represented by @JunckerEU and the United States, as represented by yours truly, love each other!” he wrote.

The president campaigned on a vow to get tough on trading partners he accuses of taking advantage of bad trade deals to run up huge trade surpluses with the U.S.

He has slapped taxes on imported steel and aluminum, saying they pose a threat to U.S. national security. The U.S. and EU are now working to resolve their differences over steel and aluminum — but the tariffs are still in place. And they would continue to hit U.S. trading partners like Canada, Mexico and Japan even if the U.S. and the EU cut a deal.

Whatever progress was achieved Wednesday could provide some relief for U.S. automakers. The escalating trade war and tariffs on steel and aluminum had put pressure on auto company earnings. General Motors had slashed its outlook, and shares of Ford Motor Co. and auto parts companies had fallen.

“Our biggest exposure, our biggest unmitigated exposure, is really steel and aluminum when you look at all of the commodities,” GM CEO Mary Barra said Wednesday.

Trump has also imposed tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports — a figure he has threatened to raise to $500 billion — in a dispute over Beijing’s aggressive drive to supplant U.S. technological dominance.

China has counterpunched with tariffs on American products, including soybeans and pork — a shot at Trump supporters in the U.S. heartland.

The EU is stepping in to ease some of U.S. farmers’ pain. Juncker said the EU “can import more soybeans from the U.S., and it will be done.”

Mary Lovely, a Syracuse University economist who studies trade, said, “The Chinese are not going to be buying our soybeans, so almost by musical chairs our soybeans are going to Europe.” The trouble is, China last year imported $12.3 billion in U.S. soybeans, the EU just $1.6 billion.

Trump’s announcement stunned lawmakers who arrived at the White House ready to unload concerns over the administration’s trade policies only to be quickly ushered into Rose Garden for what the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee called “quite a startling” development.

“I think everybody sort of changed what they were going to say,” said Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan.

Lawmakers said they still needed to see details of the agreement with the EU as well as progress on the other deals. But they said the breakthrough announcement was a step in the right direction.

“We have more confidence in him now than we did before,” said Rep. Mike Conaway, R-Texas, the chairman of the House Agriculture Committee.

The White House announcement came as the Trump administration announced a final rule aimed at speeding up approval of applications for small-scale exports of liquefied natural gas. The Trump administration has made LNG exports a priority, arguing that they help the economy and enhance geopolitical stability in countries that purchase U.S. gas.

Juncker said the two sides also agreed to work together to reform the World Trade Organization, which Trump has vehemently criticized as being unfair to the U.S.

The biggest news from the Trump-Juncker meeting is that it appears to have delayed an impending trade war over autos. Trump had threatened to tax imported cars, trucks and auto parts, potentially targeting imports that last year totaled $335 billion.

The European Union had warned that it would retaliate with tariffs on products worth $20 billion if Trump put duties on cars and auto parts from Europe.

But the auto trade war with Europe is on hold while the U.S. and EU engage in further trade talks. Daniel Ikenson, director of trade studies at the libertarian Cato Institute, warned that the fight could flare up again if Trump grows impatient with Europe.

“Auto tariffs are looming unless the EU buys more U.S. stuff and does other things Trump demands,” he said.

Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro, Kevin Freking, Christopher Rugaber, Darlene Superville, Matthew Daly and Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this story.

On Twitter, follow Ken Thomas at https://twitter.com/KThomasDC and Paul Wiseman at https://twitter.com/PaulWisemanAP </s> In a hastily called Rose Garden appearance with President Donald Trump, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the U.S. and the EU agreed to hold off on new tariffs.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and European leaders pulled back from the brink of a trade war over autos Wednesday and agreed to open talks to resolve a dispute over steel and to tear down trade barriers between the United States and the European Union.

In a hastily called Rose Garden appearance with Trump, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the U.S. and the EU agreed to hold off on new tariffs, suggesting that the United States will suspend plans to start taxing European auto imports — a move that would have marked a major escalation in trade tensions between the allies.

The tone between Trump and Juncker was friendly, a marked turnabout from the harsh rhetoric the EU and U.S. have exchanged in recent weeks.

Trump also said the EU had agreed to buy "a lot of soybeans" and increase its imports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S.

"It's encouraging that they're talking about freer trade rather than trade barriers and an escalating tariff war," said Rufus Yerxa, president of the National Foreign Trade Council and a former U.S. trade official. But he said reaching a detailed trade agreement with the EU would probably prove very difficult.

During a recent European trip, Trump referred to the EU as a "foe, what they do to us in trade." Juncker, after Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, said in March that "this is basically a stupid process, the fact that we have to do this. But we have to do it. We can also do stupid."

On Wednesday, the tone was conciliatory. Trump and Juncker said they have agreed to work toward "zero tariffs" and "zero subsidies" on non-automotive goods.

Trump told reporters it was a "very big day for free and fair trade" and vowed to "resolve the steel and aluminum tariff issues and we will resolve retaliatory tariffs. We have some tariffs that are retaliatory and that will get resolved as part of what we're doing."

"We're starting the negotiation right now, but we know very much where it's going," Trump said after talks with European counterparts.

Juncker said he had an "intention to make a deal today and we made a deal today. We have identified a number of areas on which to work together, work towards zero tariffs on industrial goods. That was my main intention, for those to come down to zero tariffs on industrial goods."

As U.S. soybean farmers have struggled against retaliatory tariffs, Juncker said the EU "can import more soybeans from the U.S. and it will be done." He said the two sides also agreed to work together to reform the World Trade Organization, which Trump has vehemently criticized as being unfair to the U.S.

Earlier in the Oval Office, Juncker told Trump that the two trading partners were "allies, not enemies," and said they needed to work together to address recent frictions involving Trump's threats to impose tariffs on auto imports and EU plans to retaliate.

Trump had placed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, saying they pose a threat to U.S. national security, an argument that the EU and Canada reject. He had also threatened to slap tariffs on imported cars, trucks and auto parts, potentially targeting imports that last year totaled $335 billion.

The European Union had warned that it would retaliate with tariffs on products worth $20 billion if Trump puts duties on cars and auto parts from Europe.

Trump's progress with EU leaders was greeted by farm-state lawmakers who have been concerned about the impact of retaliatory tariffs on soybeans and other crops.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said what farmers in his home state need "and this might be helpful in this direction— is they got to know that this thing isn't going to go on forever."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., tweeted that the agreement "not to impose additional tariffs during negotiations is very smart and the best way to achieve a win-win solution."

He added: "Now is the time for EU and US - both victims to unfair China trade practices - to unite against China." </s> WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump and European leaders pulled back from the brink of a trade war over autos Wednesday and agreed to open talks to tear down trade barriers between the United States and the European Union.

But the agreement was vague, the coming negotiations with Europe are sure to be contentious and the United States remains embroiled in major trade disputes with China and other trading partners.

In a hastily called Rose Garden appearance with Trump, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the U.S. and the EU have agreed to hold off on new tariffs, suggesting that the United States will suspend plans to start taxing European auto imports — a move that would have marked a major escalation in trade tensions between the allies.

Trump also said the EU had agreed to buy "a lot of soybeans" and increase its imports of liquefied natural gas from the U.S. And the two agreed to resolve a dispute over U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.

"It's encouraging that they're talking about freer trade rather than trade barriers and an escalating tariff war," said Rufus Yerxa, president of the National Foreign Trade Council and a former U.S. trade official. But he said reaching a detailed trade agreement with the EU would likely prove difficult.

The tone was friendlier than it has been. During a recent European trip, Trump referred to the EU as a "foe, what they do to us in trade." Juncker, after Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, said in March that "this is basically a stupid process, the fact that we have to do this. But we have to do it. We can also do stupid."

On Wednesday, Trump and Juncker said they have agreed to work toward "zero tariffs" and "zero subsidies" on non-automotive goods.

Trump told reporters it was a "very big day for free and fair trade" and later tweeted a photo of himself and Juncker in an embrace, with Juncker kissing his cheek.

"Obviously the European Union, as represented by @JunckerEU and the United States, as represented by yours truly, love each other!" he wrote.

The president campaigned on a vow to get tough on trading partners he accuses of taking advantage of bad trade deals to run up huge trade surpluses with the U.S.

He has slapped taxes on imported steel and aluminum, saying they pose a threat to U.S. national security. The U.S. and EU are now working to resolve their differences over steel and aluminum — but the tariffs are still in place. And they would continue to hit U.S. trading partners like Canada, Mexico and Japan even if the U.S. and the EU cut a deal.

Whatever progress was achieved Wednesday could provide some relief for U.S. automakers. The escalating trade war and tariffs on steel and aluminum had put pressure on auto company earnings. General Motors had slashed its outlook, and shares of Ford Motor Co. and auto parts companies had fallen.

"Our biggest exposure, our biggest unmitigated exposure, is really steel and aluminum when you look at all of the commodities," GM CEO Mary Barra said Wednesday.

Trump has also imposed tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports — a figure he has threatened to raise to $500 billion — in a dispute over Beijing's aggressive drive to supplant U.S. technological dominance.

China has counterpunched with tariffs on American products, including soybeans and pork — a shot at Trump supporters in the U.S. heartland.

The EU is stepping in to ease some of U.S. farmers' pain. Juncker said the EU "can import more soybeans from the U.S., and it will be done."

Mary Lovely, a Syracuse University economist who studies trade, said, "The Chinese are not going to be buying our soybeans, so almost by musical chairs our soybeans are going to Europe." The trouble is, China last year imported $12.3 billion in U.S. soybeans, the EU just $1.6 billion.

Trump's announcement stunned lawmakers who arrived at the White House ready to unload concerns over the administration's trade policies only to be quickly ushered into Rose Garden for what the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee called "quite a startling" development.

"I think everybody sort of changed what they were going to say," said Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan.

Lawmakers said they still needed to see details of the agreement with the EU as well as progress on the other deals. But they said the breakthrough announcement was a step in the right direction.

Story continues </s> (CBS) — President Trump and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker have agreed to work towards “zero” tariffs,” Mr. Trump announced in a joint statement with Juncker in the White House Rose Garden Wednesday. Juncker said the two have agreed to hold off on further tariffs as they negotiate the details.

“We agreed today, first of all, to work together toward zero tariffs, zero, non-tariff barriers, and zero subsidies on non-auto industrial goods,” Mr. Trump told reporters.

The news comes after Mr. Trump threatened tariffs on auto imports, and Reuters reported the European Commission is preparing retaliatory tariffs. Mr. Trump has long threatened to continue raising tariffs, claiming the EU treats the U.S. and particularly farmers unfairly.

“When I was invited by the president to the White House, I had one intention: I had the intention to make a deal today. And we made a deal today,” Juncker said.

Mr. Trump noted a few specifics on the agreement he says the U.S. and EU teams reached Wednesday. Later in the afternoon, the EU issued their joint statement.
• Mr. Trump said the two will “work to reduce barriers and increase trade in services, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, medical products, as well as soy beans, soy beans is a big deal. And the European Union is going to start, almost immediately, to buy a lot of soy beans, they’re a tremendous market, buy a lot of soy beans from our farmers in the Midwest, primarily.”
• “Secondly, we agreed to a strengthened and strengthening of our strategic cooperation with respect to energy,” Mr. Trump said. “The European Union wants to import more liquified natural gas, LNG, from the United States, and they’re going to be a very, very big buyer. We’re going to make it much easier for them but they’re going to be a massive buyer of LNG so they’ll be able to diversify their energy supply.”
• “Thirdly we agreed today to launch a close dialogue on standards in order to ease trade, reduce bureaucratic obstacles, and slash costs dramatically,” the president said.

Mr. Trump also said the U.S. will “resolve the steel and aluminum tariff issues and we will resolve retaliatory tariffs.”

The U.S. and EU, Mr. Trump said, are establishing an executive working group to hash out details on trade and assess existing tariffs “to the betterment of both.”

“We’re starting the negotiation right now but we know very much where it’s going,” Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Trump said the EU and U.S. are launching a “new phase in the relationship” between the two nations, one of close “friendship.” Less than two weeks ago, Mr. Trump told CBS News’ Jeff Glor he considers the EU a “foe” because of how the collection of nations has treated the U.S. on trade.

Moments before the joint statement was to start, the White House issued a press release blasting other nations, including the EU, over tariffs related to agriculture.

The president has continued to rant over trade on Twitter, as even members of his own party declare tariffs ineffective at best, and harmful at worst.

“Every time I see a weak politician asking to stop Trade talks or the use of Tariffs to counter unfair Tariffs, I wonder, what can they be thinking? Are we just going to continue and let our farmers and country get ripped off? Lost $817 Billion on Trade last year. No weakness!” the president tweeted Wednesday morning. </s> BRUSSELS, Aug 31 — The European Union’s detente on tariffs with the United States has not put to rest “profound disagreements” on trade policy, the European commissioner in charge of trade said yesterday.

In Washington, US President Donald Trump rejected an EU offer to eliminate tariffs on cars and said the EU’s trade policies are “almost as bad as China,” Bloomberg News reported.

Trump agreed in July to refrain from imposing car tariffs while the two sides sought to cut other trade barriers, in a move described then by the European Commission chief as a major concession.

Speaking to the trade committee of the European Parliament yesterday, European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom discussed a group that she and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will lead to determine how tariffs might be removed on industrial goods.

“We are not negotiating anything, we have a working group. We have profound disagreements with the United States on trade policy,” Malmstrom said.

A number of the European lawmakers were fierce critics of a planned EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), negotiations which ended after Trump’s election victory in 2016.

“We are not restarting TTIP ... This could be a more limited trade agreement, focused on tariffs on goods only,” Malmstrom said.

She also said the European Union would be willing to reduce its car tariffs to zero, if the United States did the same, going beyond the provisional agreement struck in July which referred only to “non-auto industrial goods”.

“We would do it if they do it. That remains to be seen,” she said, adding she hoped a deal could be finalised by the end of the Commission’s five-year term running until October 31, 2019.

Trump, in an interview with Bloomberg, said of the EU proposal to scrap auto tariffs: “It’s not good enough.”

“Their consumer habits are to buy their cars, not to buy our cars,” Trump added, according to Bloomberg.

“The European Union is almost as bad as China, just smaller,” Bloomberg quoted Trump as saying.

The European Union remains at odds with the United States over US blocking of the appointment of judges at the World Trade Organisation, over tariffs set for reasons of national security and over Washington’s tough stance towards China.

Malmstrom said many US companies and politicians were voicing concerns over goods becoming more expensive in the United States as a result of tariffs.

The European Union shared US criticism of China over industry subsidies, state intervention and forced technology transfers, but believed its approach was wrong, she said.

“We share those concerns, but we do not agree with their methods of imposing massively billions of tariffs on China, as they have also done with Turkey. We do not share US view that trade wars are good and easy to win,” the commissioner said. — Reuters </s> The United States and European Union will establish a dialogue on trade within the next two weeks, a French official said on Friday, signaling a modest step forward for bitterly divided allies at a Group of Seven summit in Canada.

The United States and European Union will establish a dialogue on trade within the next two weeks, a French official said on Friday, signaling a modest step forward for bitterly divided allies at a Group of Seven summit in Canada.

No breakthrough at G7 summit - but US and EU take small step on trade

U.S. trading partners have been furious over President Donald Trump's decision last week to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, the European Union and Mexico as part of his "America First" agenda. Some countries have retaliated with their own levies on U.S. imports.

"The principle of a dialogue was agreed this afternoon," the French official told reporters. "Everyone agreed, including President Trump." While G7 leaders confronted Trump with a slew of data on imports and exports in a bid to sway his thinking, Trump countered his own numbers and held his position that the United States was at a disadvantage on international trade, an official who followed the talks said.

But Trump struck a more affable tone after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, saying the French leader was helping work out trade issues. "Something's going to happen. I think it will be very positive," Trump said, without giving details.

Macron said it was possible to advance the trade issues that have split the U.S. and its allies. "I think, on trade, there is ... a way to progress all together," he told reporters after his meeting with Trump. "I saw the willingness on all the sides to find agreements and have a win-win approach for our people, our workers, and our middle classes."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday floated an idea to set up a way to resolve trade disputes between the United States and its allies. An official described Merkel's suggestion as a "shared assessment and dialogue" mechanism, but gave no further details. It was unclear if the technical talks were part of her initiative. The proposal was supported by other leaders present, the official said. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker offered to visit Washington for an assessment of EU-US trade to help resolve the dispute, an official said.

Merkel said it was not clear whether the group would issue a final directive, adding that failure to do so would be an honest reflection of the lack of agreement among Canada, the United States, Japan, Britain, Italy, France and Germany. The EU is also attending the summit. Trump had set a combative tone before leaving Washington on Friday, saying he was "going to deal with the unfair trade practices" of other G7 members.

But he was more affable after meeting Macron and Trudeau, swapping jokes with the latter before the media though neither budged on their trade positions. "We've had really a very good relationship, very special," the U.S. president said of Macron, a day after the two leaders had exchanged terse messages on Twitter. "We have little tests every once in a while when it comes to trade." Merkel and Trump also had a brief conversation at the summit but no bilateral meeting.

Trump’s "America First" message to allies has hardened since he brought hardline national security adviser John Bolton on to his team. Trump plans to leave the summit four hours earlier than originally planned to fly to Singapore to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the White House said. G7 chiefs have largely praised Trump for his efforts to stabilize the Korean peninsula, but they are unhappy he pulled out of an international agreement to limit Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Canada and the EU have denounced the U.S. tariffs and Ottawa has proposed levies on a range of U.S. goods next month while the EU has pledged its own retaliatory measures. British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday warned both Trump and the EU of the dangers of entering a tit-for-tat trade war over tariffs, urging both sides to instead focus on China's excess steel production. Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said her country "will not change its mind when it comes to the illegal" application of tariffs.

The spat has financial markets worried about tit-for-tit escalation. Investors are also concerned about the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Trump has threatened to terminate. Canada and Mexico, the other members of the 1994 pact, have been frustrated by the slow pace of talks to renegotiate NAFTA. A Canadian official said Trump and Trudeau discussed accelerating NAFTA talks. Relations with Russia also became an issue at the summit after Trump on Friday said the country should be allowed to again attend meetings with the G7, an idea that did not gain much traction at the meeting and was not formally raised. Russia was suspended from group in 2014 because of its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. Trump said Russia should be readmitted, but even Moscow seemed to reject that suggestion.

Merkel said EU countries at the summit agreed that the conditions to readmit Russia had not been met. Trump's presidency has been clouded by a federal investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, and possible collusion by his campaign. Both Moscow and Trump have denied the allegations. </s> EU leaders agreed to hold their tongues — and their noses — as they brace for U.S. President Donald Trump to barnstorm into Europe.

As leaders convened in Brussels on Thursday for one of their busiest summits in recent memory, Trump provided fresh outrage — an assertion at a rally in North Dakota that “the European Union, of course, was set up to take advantage of the United States.”

It was not, of course. But none of the leaders gathered in the Council’s Europa building voiced any hope of changing the mind of America’s reality-TV-star-in-chief.

Not French President Emmanuel Macron, who initially tried to build a bromance with Trump. Not German Chancellor Angela Merkel who has given him little more than a stink-eye from the start. Nor U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May, who will welcome Trump to London next month.

Instead, the leaders used an afternoon conversation about the trade war that Trump ignited by imposing steel and aluminum tariffs to dwell on the larger importance of the transatlantic bond — even if Italy’s beef about the EU’s approach to migration meant that the country’s prime minister was threatening to block any conclusions from the summit.

On Trump, the consensus was to adopt a strategy of containment, to avoid inciting the combustible president, who has made no secret of his disdain for the international order that somehow, in his view, victimized the country that created it.

Even NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who works constantly to safeguard the transatlantic relationship, made no attempt to paper over the divisions. “There are disagreements between European and allies and the United States on issues like trade, the Iran nuclear deal, or climate change,” he told POLITICO in a brief interview. “There is no way to deny that.”

But even as Stoltenberg said he was optimistic those disagreements would be overcome, EU leaders were talking about the U.S. president in the terms NATO usually reserves for Russia: deterrence and dialogue.

Retaliatory tariffs have already gone into effect, and Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told leaders he would use a visit to the White House — now expected in late July — to repeat the message the Europeans delivered at the G7 summit earlier this month: that Trump’s trade war is a lose-lose for all. “We are worried but not at war yet,” reported one EU official who listened in on the leaders’ discussion.

In a sign of Europe’s continued engagement, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will visit Washington next week. Trump will then make the reverse trip across the Atlantic a week later, stopping first in Brussels for a NATO leaders’ summit at the alliance’s headquarters, before traveling on to the U.K. and then to Helsinki for a pow-wow with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The confirmation on Thursday of the meeting with Putin, to be held the day after the World Cup final in Moscow, injected fresh worry and concern into the EU leaders’ conversation — but also contributed to the sense of resignation that there was little they could do to dissuade Trump from embracing leaders openly antagonistic to the West.

Instead, there was some relief that he would meet Putin after the NATO summit, allowing allies to first voice a common line on issues like the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Syria, as well as the global fight against terrorism.

Still, the sequence of events seems heavy with risk for the EU.

If Trump again pummels NATO allies over military spending, or if he opens new cracks in the collective Western shield, it could deliver an easy own goal — to the benefit of the Russian leader, who has long sought to split Europe and the U.S.

Read this next: Italy stalls EU summit with block on joint conclusions </s> Leaders of the Group of Seven are arriving for a working meeting focused on looming threats to the global economy.

U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of the other G-7 countries, France, Britain, Italy, Japan, Germany, Canada as well as the European Union were expected to discuss the spread of trade disputes, notably the U.S. trade war with China.

Sunday's gathering in the French seaside resort of Biarritz comes on the heels of the first face-to-face meeting between Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is hoping for a quick trade accord with the United States as Britain's exit from the European Union approaches.
U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders agree to halt their trade war over vehicles and say they will open talks on removing trade barriers between the United States and the European Union.