'Line has been drawn': Allies warn of $100+ billion retaliation for Trump's new tariffs
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the Detroit Economic Club in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., January 13, 2026. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
January 18, 2026
America's allies in Europe warned on Sunday that they are prepared to move forward with a more than $100 billion plan to retaliate for President Donald Trump's latest round of tariffs, according to a new report.
On Saturday, Trump imposed new 10% tariffs on all goods from six EU countries, the U.K., and Norway, in an attempt to up the ante in his bid to acquire Greenland from the Kingdom of Denmark. On Sunday, diplomats from the bloc's 27 governments met to affirm their options to "fight back" against the tariffs, Politico's European bureau reported.
“It’s clear that a line has been drawn and enough is enough,” said one diplomat with knowledge of Sunday's talks. “But at the moment we are discussing options — if Trump’s tariffs are imposed, then we will be discussing not what options there are but which options to use.”
One option the diplomats discussed is a roughly $107 billion tariff package the bloc prepared when Trump announced his first round of tariffs in 2025. Those tariffs were put on hold when the EU signed a trade deal with the U.S. in July 2025.
Another option under discussion is using the bloc's "trade bazooka" to hold the U.S. accountable for trying to politically blackmail the EU, according to the report.
"This is a stronger measure and would come up against some concern from more cautious members of the bloc," the report reads. "Governments did not ask the European Commission to move forward with the deployment of the tool at this stage, according to three diplomats."