U.S. objections to VAT, which applies in 170-plus countries, are hard to address. Brussels says it is similar to U.S. sales tax and not a tariff. Moreover, taxes are set by individual member states and so cannot be negotiated by the Commission.

The European Union will take "a bit of time" before it responds to the new reciprocal tariff rates U.S. President Donald Trump plans to outline on April 2, Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said on Wednesday.

In his first term, Trump also targeted the alcohol industry. A series of tit-for-tat tariffs hit alcohol products in the U.S. and the EU. The Biden administration suspended those tariffs, but now the industry is once again in the crosshairs. The industry has still been recovering from that first tariff spat.