“What I’m urging everyone here to do is sit back, take a deep breath, and let things play out. As I said on April 2, the worst thing countries can do is escalate against the United States.”
But he specified that “what President Trump is threatening on Greenland is very different than the other trade deals.”
“So I would urge all countries to stick with their trade deals we have agreed on them,” Bessent added.
Potential weapons at the EU’s disposal include a readymade €93 billion package of retaliatory tariffs, as well as the bloc’s Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI) or “trade bazooka,” designed to penalize countries that use their markets as a tool for geopolitical blackmail.
However, EU diplomats and officials have told POLITICO they want to avoid retaliation and are betting that a diplomatic solution to the crisis can still be found.
Meanwhile, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has ruled out retaliation against Donald Trump’s threats, telling reporters on Monday “a tariff war is in nobody’s interest, and we have not got to that stage.”