U.S. President Donald Trump has criticized the European Commission's decision to fine Google and threatened to impose punitive tariffs on the European Union.
In a post on the Truth Social platform, the American president said: "Europe today attacked another large American company, Google."
Warning under Article 301
Trump stressed that if the EU does not review the "unfair" fines imposed on Google and Apple, it will be "forced" to activate Article 301, the mechanism that provides for trade sanctions against countries or organizations deemed to be engaging in unfair practices.
"We cannot allow this to happen in brilliant and unprecedented American ingenuity," he wrote, warning that he would move to "repeal the unfair penalties imposed on taxpayer American corporations."
The Commission's fine
The European Commission said earlier it had fined Google $2.95 billion, accusing it of abusing its dominant position in online advertising.
U.S. President Donald Trump has warned of imposing "quite significant" tariffs on chips and semiconductor imports from companies that do not transfer their production to the United States, excluding those that invest in the domestic market, such as Apple.
During a White House dinner with top technology CEOs — including Apple's Tim Cook, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg and Oracle's Safra Katz — Trump said: "We're going to impose tariffs on companies that don't come. We will impose tariffs very soon."
Possible imposition of 100% duties
The president recalled his intention, which he had expressed in August, to impose 100 percent tariffs on semiconductor imports, with the exception of products from companies that transport production lines to the United States. Apple has already pledged to invest $100 billion as part of its home-built initiative.
Trump hinted that Cook and Apple are "in pretty good shape" against potential tariffs because of the company's investment plans in the U.S.
Pressure on partners and markets
Since returning to power in January 2025, Trump has made tariffs a key tool of U.S. trade and foreign policy. His strategy has caused concern among trading partners, burdened financial markets, and amplified global economic uncertainty.
''If companies come to the country, if they are building, if they plan to come, there will be no tariffs," the president stressed.
