White House’s Navarro Presses EU on VAT ‘Subsidy’ and Non-Tariff Barriers

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said the European Union’s value-added tax operates as an implicit subsidy that disadvantages U.S. exports and should be rolled back. Speaking in a televised interview, Navarro added that Washington wants “VAT tax relief and lower tariffs” from Brussels. Navarro also argued that the EU’s array of non-tariff barriers constitutes the bloc’s “big challenge” and urged European officials to address them. His remarks underscore persistent trans-Atlantic trade tensions that have intensified since the United States imposed steep duties on a range of foreign goods earlier this year.