▲ U.S. President Donald Trump
U.S. President Donald Trump has warned of retaliatory tariffs through a Section 301 trade investigation in response to the European Union's imposition of a massive fine on Google.
Writing on his social media platform Truth Social on the 24th local time, President Trump stated, "I was disturbed to hear that Google, a truly advanced and incredible American company, has been hit with another 1 billion dollar fine by the EU with no explanation." He added, "The United States is not Europe's piggy bank, and we will not let it become one!"
President Trump went on to emphasize, "We will immediately initiate a Section 301 investigation into practices that 'plunder' U.S. companies and taxpayers," warning that "the EU will pay a very big price for this illegal and highly unethical behavior."
He also added, "All fines will be refunded, and we expect substantial tariffs to be imposed as soon as possible."
A day prior, the EU levied an additional fine of 890 million euros, approximately 1.5 trillion won, on U.S. big tech firm Google for violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act grants the executive branch the authority to respond to unfair or discriminatory practices and policies by foreign governments, such as by imposing tariffs.
The "forced labor tariffs" imposed the previous day by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on 60 countries, including South Korea, also stemmed from a Section 301 investigation.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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