Antonio Tajani: “Whiskey is off the list of reciprocal tariffs expected by the European Union”

American whiskey is off the list of reciprocal tariffs provided by the European Union. This was announced to the president of Unione Italiana Vini - Uiv, Lamberto Frescobaldi, by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and vice president of the Council of Ministers, Antonio Tajani, on the petition “aimed at safeguarding the immediate retaliation on wine” that he supported in the Foreign Affairs Council in Trade format convened, today in Luxembourg, as an extraordinary event, by the Polish Presidency, with on the agenda an exchange of views among EU trade ministers on EU-US trade relations, to analyze the reciprocal tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump on April 2 and with the aim of agreeing on a common and pragmatic response, but also on EU-China trade relations, stressing that “we are going in the right direction because it seems to me that two elements prevail in this Council: Europe’s unity and the desire not to start a trade war. Everyone is in favor of dialogue to prevent a trade war”, as also reiterated by EU Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen and Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi, who visited Vinitaly 2025 in Verona.
“Despite all the discussions we had, we saw the tariffs imposed on the EU on April 2, and so we have to move forward with taking countermeasures. All the deadlines are clearly determined by the legal process. So we will distribute the list of countermeasures tonight. The vote will be on April 9, duty collection starts on April 15 for the first part, and in full compliance with the WTO methodology, the second part will go into effect 30 days later. So we are talking about May 15”, EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said, dictating the EU “road map”, which follows Trump’s, on the sidelines of the EU Council, and stating that “it is not possible to delay the entry into force of duties. Sooner or later the U.S. will sit at the table”, he added, “at the same time, so far, despite efforts and openings, we have not seen a real commitment that would lead to a mutually acceptable solution, because it has to be fair for both sides. It will not rise to the level of the 26 billion euros equal to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. We don’t want to react eye for eye and we want to distribute the burdens fairly among member countries”. “I hope that the visit of Council President Giorgia Meloni in the coming weeks to the U.S. will be useful,” Minister Tajani added, for his part, “all of us, member states, have to convince the U.S. to have a dialoguing position, then clearly the EU Commission does the negotiating. Some signs of dialogue came during the talks with Sefcovic. It doesn’t mean bending your head, you have to negotiate with a straight back. With PM Meloni, also today, convening the summit on tariffs at Palazzo Chigi, Rome, with Vice-Premiers Tajani and Matteo Salvini and Ministers of Economy Giancarlo Giorgetti, of Made in Italy Adolfo Urso, of Agriculture Francesco Lollobrigida (via video link), and of European Affairs and Pnrr Tommaso Foti, while, tomorrow, representatives of the manufacturing world are expected at Palazzo Chigi.
“Probably today the European Council will choose to “unfreeze” an old list of U.S. products to be sanctioned with increased duties. We believe that whiskey should not be included, which would lead to stronger duties on wine”, Tajani himself had said, only a few hours earlier, in connection from Luxembourg at Vinitaly 2025 in Verona, with Veronafiere president Federico Bricolo, Agenzia Ice president Matteo Zoppas, and the Honorable Maria Paola Boscaini. “There is great unity at the European level to avoid that each state treats for itself. It seems to me that there is also convergence on the part of the EU Commission on the absolute necessity of not triggering a trade war. The hope is to arrive at zero U.S. tariffs and zero EU tariffs, to give birth to a large EU-U.S. free market economic space, to foster the growth of the economy”. Minister Tajani also announced a new plan to look for new areas where we can increase exports, “We will organize initiatives to explore new markets and recover whatever we can from the damage of U.S. duties. We will be in India this week, also with the participation of Veronafiere President Federico Bricolo. Then to Caserta for a business forum with the Dutch and then to Japan, in anticipation of Prime Minister Meloni’s mission to the US. Italy - concluded the minister - wants to be a protagonist within a strategy to benefit not only our country but the whole of Europe”. As anticipated by Tajani, in fact, Veronafiere will be present with President Bricolo and Director General Adolfo Rebughini, on April 10 and 11, in New Delhi for the “Italy-India Science and Technology Business Forum”. The Asian country is already part of Veronafiere’s international development plan, which, last March 9, organized the first edition of Vinitaly India Roadshow precisely in New Delhi.
“I would also like to thank Minister Tajani on behalf of Unione Italiana Vini for having accepted and successfully completed an instance of fundamental importance for our sector”, concluded Uiv President Frescobaldi. Last March 18, in fact, Uiv, had met with the minister to point out the risks and the danger of spiraling into a counterproductive spiral that sees European spirits-including wine-exporting 8 billion euros against imports of the same products for 1.3 billion euros. Additional tariffs on U.S. spirits were initially announced by the European Union and frozen after the Trump administration threatened to retaliate with 200% tariffs.