The EU is making a “final push” to hammer out trade differences with the US, but hawkish voices argued for an aggressive response.

President Donald Trump threatened last week to increase tariffs on European vehicles, accusing the bloc of reneging on an agreed deal. In response, French President Emmanuel Macron called for the EU to deploy its “bazooka,” a hitherto unused “anti-coercion instrument” which could impose levies on US goods and exclude US firms from procurement deals.

Brussels is increasingly distancing itself from Washington, a Carnegie Endowment scholar noted, shifting toward sovereignty in defense and tech, but it is fighting two fronts: It is also trying to combat a glut of cheap goods coming from China.