The European Union (EU) will respond with "legal, legitimate, proportionate, and decisive measures" to Donald Trump's trade tariffs, but its strongest weapon is still "on the table," the chairman of the European Parliament's international trade committee said on Thursday.

Addressing the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, Bernd Lange labelled the new U.S. trade tariffs as "unjustified, illegal, and disproportionate," saying that they could only lead to further tariff escalation and a downward economic spiral for both the U.S. and the world as a whole.

He said the EU was considering the use of the Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI), which some EU insiders have referred to as "the big bazooka."

"This is not our first step. Using the ACI would be a hard escalation and therefore a last resort, but we have it," he said.

The EU ACI, in force since December 2023, equips the EU with a direct tool to counter third-country economic coercion by imposing targeted response measures.

Under the act, a broader range of countermeasures has been made available, allowing the EU not only to impose tariffs on goods but also to restrict third-country companies from participating in public procurement projects or to limit services, trade, and investment.

Lange said that the EU would carefully consider which tools at its disposal would be most effective in responding, emphasizing that it would not back down.

Counter tariffs are set, and negotiations could begin, Lange said. "If we are really in an escalation ladder, then of course, we will also look at the tech giants. I would say this is not the first choice."

"I do hope this (U.S.) administration is genuinely interested in engaging with the EU, but I am not confident," Lange noted. Enditem