24 July 2026 – The new US tariffs resulting from the Section 301 investigation into forced labour have been in force since 12.01 a.m. Eastern Time today. And Brussels? Speaking on the sidelines of the ASEAN meetings in Manila, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas declared that the American accusation was not really justified. Her counterarguments, however, were alarmingly detached from reality.
US Section 301 Forced Labour Tariffs: Washington Delivers, Brussels Looks On
A Measure That Could Have Surprised No One
The new US tariffs resulting from the Section 301 investigation into forced labour have been in force since 12.01 a.m. Eastern Time today. The process leading up to them was entirely public: the investigation was launched on 12 March 2026 against 60 economies, followed by the determination on 2 June, more than 1,600 written submissions, a three day hearing from 7 to 9 July and the final decision on 23 July.
The New Section 301 Tariff Rates
The Section 301 tariff rates are 10 per cent for economies that have introduced an import ban or made a corresponding commitment, and 12.5 per cent for all others.
The crucial point for our readers is that goods already subject to Section 232 tariffs are exempt. Steel and aluminium therefore remain subject to their existing Section 232 rates, with no additional forced labour tariffs.
Following pressure from US foundries and electric arc furnace steelmakers, exemptions were also granted for pig iron, iron and aluminium scrap, and vanadium oxides. Those who need raw materials receive exemptions. Those who supply finished goods pay. It is reminiscent of the EU’s strikingly selective steel tariff policy.
The EU Foreign Policy Chief and the Art of Missing the Point
And Brussels? Speaking on the sidelines of the ASEAN meetings in Manila, Kaja Kallas said that the American accusation was not really justified. Her reasoning was that European labour law should be compared with its American equivalent, and that Europe provided paid holidays and good working conditions.
Is Kallas Missing the Point Deliberately?
That is not an answer. It is a change of subject.
The USTR is not accusing the EU of treating its own employees badly. The accusation is that the EU is failing to enforce an effective import ban on products made using forced labour.
That accusation is remarkably difficult to refute because, according to the USTR’s findings, the EU’s much celebrated 2024 Regulation will not take effect until December 2027. A ban that does not yet apply is rather difficult to enforce.
Who Can Even Keep Track of These Tariffs?
Then came the additional remark: who could even keep track of the tariffs any more, when they came and went?
One might regard that as irony. Coming from the most senior foreign policy representative of an economic bloc of 450 million people, it amounts to an admission of failure.
Bernd Lange, EU MEP and Chair of the Committee on International Trade, had already responded in early June, calling the Section 301 findings absurd. The Commission did the same. Seven weeks elapsed between the proposal and its implementation.
Is Kallas Merely Performing for a Domestic Audience?
That leaves two possibilities.
Either Kallas is engaging in calculated polemics for a domestic audience and considers her citizens less discerning than they are. Or the EU leadership genuinely slept through a trade procedure that had been announced, consulted upon and scheduled.
In either case, the bill is being paid by Europe’s exporting small and medium sized enterprises. Because of the European Union’s inability to safeguard their competitiveness, they have had to rewrite their calculations this morning.
Thorsten Gerber, CEO of the Gerber Group, said today: “Ms Kallas, Members of Parliament concerned, Commission: sit down! 6!”
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