Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said he considered the tariffs imposed by the United States to be wrong and unfortunate, in an interview with Denik.cz today. He added that he does not expect them to have a direct impact on the Czech Republic, but their indirect impact on the country may be very strong.
“The impact will not be as completely direct as it could be on some other countries, but it could be very strong indirectly, just because of our exports that go, for example, through Germany and other countries,” Fiala said.
On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump announced a large package of so-called “reciprocal tariffs”, with a minimum rate of 10% on most goods imported to the US, but a 20% rate on imports of EU products. The president claims these measures will boost US manufacturing.
Europe is ready to negotiate with the US, but it is also ready to give a clear answer, Fiala (ODS) told CTK today.
ANO deputy leader Karel Havlicek told journalists today that the direct impact of the announced US tariffs on Czech households and consumers would be minimal. “At the moment, it doesn’t mean anything fundamental to them. The indirect impact will depend mainly on our trading partners in the EU,” he said.
The situation could change if the European Union were to retaliate, Havlicek said. ANO does not support taking retaliatory measures, but rather advises a “calm and measured response”, in line with the position of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, he added.
Czech Agriculture Minister Marek Vyborny (KDU-CSL) said on Wednesday evening that the tariffs announced by Trump were not good for anyone. Chamber of Deputies Speaker Marketa Pekarova Adamova (TOP 09) said further tariffs on US imports pose a serious risk to the global economy.
They both told CTK that they expected a European reaction.
Industry and Trade Minister Lukas Vlcek (STAN) said the EU had prepared a first set of countermeasures worth more than 20 billion euros.
Havlicek said the European Union had neglected negotiations with the new US administration and needed to find negotiators. He noted that the EU had known about the US plan for months or even years.
“Europe should have prepared for it long ago, it should not have been allowed to reach this situation,” he said. The results of the negotiations between the European Commission and the new US administration, not only on tariffs, have so far been dismal, he added.
PM Fiala noted that the structure of the announced tariffs was not yet clear. “And until it is clear, it is not even possible to calculate the exact impacts,” he told Denik. He said the impact on economic growth in Europe, including the Czech Republic, will be in the order of tenths of a percent.
Fiala said he was convinced of the benefits of free trade, with as few barriers as possible and preferably without tariffs, and said Trump’s announcement was therefore wrong and unfortunate. If the United States sticks to its isolationist path, it will have a demonstrably negative effect on global trade and prosperity, the prime minister added.
Fiala also argued that Europe has no choice but to react to the US measures. “Europe is ready to negotiate with the US, but it is also ready to respond clearly. We did not provoke this trade war. The actions of the US side are harming every citizen of the Czech Republic, and we cannot pass this with silence,” Fiala told CTK today. The best tariffs are zero tariffs, he added.
