ISTANBUL

The head of Belgium’s technology federation, Agoria, warned that the new US tariffs on the EU would be “an economic disaster," Belga news agency reported on Sunday.

"Nothing short of an economic disaster threatens the (technology) industry in Belgium if there is no better, negotiated deal between Europe and the United States by 1 August,” said Bart Steukers.

Steukers urged Belgian and European leaders to respond “rationally and intelligently," avoiding escalation while exploring alternative opportunities beyond the US.

"There are several other trade agreements on the table. Those that are around, with Mercosur, Mexico and Chile, must be concluded without delay.

"Belgium has still not fully ratified CETA (Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) with Canada. And negotiations with Australia, India, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia should also be finalized as soon as possible," he noted.

Calling for a smoother single market, Steukers reiterated the need to remove internal trade barriers and market distortions within the EU.

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot on Saturday also called for the resumption of negotiations until Aug. 1 to return to a "mutually beneficial" partnership rather than having a "sterile arm wrestling."

"This escalation of tariffs will only lead to a lose-lose situation. The US's trade aggression against its European allies is unjustified and a source of what investors fear most: uncertainty, insecurity and fragility," he wrote on X.

On Saturday, Trump announced that the US will impose 30% tariffs on the EU and Mexico starting from Aug. 1, putting US-EU trade talks at risk, as the bloc had aimed to finalize a comprehensive trade deal this month.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump shared separate letters addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, announcing a 30% tariff on goods bound for the US from Europe and Mexico.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen then voiced readiness to work toward an agreement with the US by Aug. 1 and vowed to take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures.