Negotiators from the European Parliament and EU member states concluded overnight talks on measures needed to enforce the agreement reached last year between Washington and Brussels.

The trade accord, negotiated in July 2025 between Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Turnberry, Scotland, set tariffs on most European exports to the United States at 15 percent while requiring the EU to eliminate duties on many US imports.

Implementation had stalled for months amid political disagreements inside the bloc and concerns over Trump’s broader trade policies.Von der Leyen welcomed Wednesday’s breakthrough, saying the agreement would allow the EU to fulfill its obligations under the transatlantic trade framework.

“Together, we can ensure stable, predictable, balanced, and mutually beneficial transatlantic trade,” she said in a statement posted on social media.Trump had warned the EU it faced significantly higher tariffs if the agreement was not ratified by early July and had previously threatened to raise duties on European automobiles and trucks from 15 percent to 25 percent.

The dispute had intensified pressure on Brussels to secure stability in trade relations with Washington, its largest economic partner, with annual transatlantic trade valued at roughly 1.6 trillion euros ($1.9 trillion).

The final agreement includes safeguards allowing the European Commission to suspend favorable tariff arrangements if the United States violates the deal or targets EU businesses through discriminatory trade actions.

EU negotiators also secured provisions enabling Brussels to respond if surges in US imports threaten domestic European industries.However, lawmakers softened several earlier demands opposed by Washington, including provisions that would have required the United States to immediately remove tariffs above 15 percent on steel components before EU measures took effect.

The finalized text also removed a proposed “sunrise clause” that would have delayed implementation until Washington fully complied with all commitments.A separate “sunset clause” was extended until the end of 2029, postponing the need for renegotiation or renewal of the arrangement.

Bernd Lange, who led negotiations within parliament, said lawmakers had succeeded in securing safeguards protecting European interests.But Anna Cavazzini criticized the compromise, saying the agreement still placed the EU at a disadvantage despite helping stabilize trade tensions.

The accord comes after more than a year of transatlantic trade disputes triggered by Trump’s tariff policies on steel, aluminum, vehicles and industrial goods.

A three-judge panel at the US Court of International Trade will consider lawsuits filed by 24 mostly Democratic-led states and two small businesses seeking to block the tariffs, which took effect on February 24.

The plaintiffs contend the policy sidesteps a decision by the US Supreme Court that struck down a broad set of earlier tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The Trump administration has defended the tariffs as a lawful response to persistent trade imbalances, arguing that the United States’ long-standing deficit importing more goods than it exports justifies emergency measures.

The tariffs were enacted under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which permits duties of up to 15% for a limited period in cases of significant balance-of-payments deficits or to prevent a sharp depreciation of the U.S. dollar.

Plaintiffs argue that the provision is intended for short-term monetary crises and does not apply to routine trade deficits, which they say do not meet the statutory threshold.The legal dispute marks a further test of executive authority over trade policy, an area traditionally involving congressional oversight.

Trump has made tariffs a central element of his economic and foreign policy agenda in his second term, asserting broad unilateral powers to impose import duties.

The case follows a February 20 ruling by the Supreme Court that invalidated many of Trump’s earlier tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, finding that the statute did not grant the authority he had claimed.

The current lawsuits do not challenge other tariffs imposed under more conventional legal frameworks, including duties on steel, aluminum and copper imports.