The French minister suggested that it was in fact America that had launched an attack on Europe by adopting a more aggressive trade policy targeting European imports with tariffs.
The U. S. should not see a proposed European levy on internet giants as an attack against the country, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told CNBC on Saturday — but took the opportunity to chide America on its trade war.
A European Commission proposal would impose a 3 percent tax on big companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon, who derive a big chunk of their revenues from within the continent.
On Saturday, the French minister suggested that it was in fact America that had launched an attack on Europe, by adopting a more aggressive trade policy that targets European imports with tariffs.
« I had the impression that we are not the ones who attacked the United States, » Le Maire told CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick . « When you are looking at the trade situation, I have the impression that this is the United States that has decided to put tariffs on European goods, not the contrary. »
He added: « I would like to also underline that fair taxation is not taxation against the United States. The purpose of that taxation is to have a fair and efficient taxation at an international level. »
Le Maire, alongside German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, said in a statement on Saturday that he would propose a « sunset clause » to the planned EU tax on the digital turnover of big companies, in a bid to reach compromise with other European countries.
The clause would mean the new tax on tech giants would be phased out once a further deal is met on an international level.
France’s Le Maire explained that the proposed EU tax would target European firms as well, not just US corporate entities.
« There will be European companies included in the scope of the taxation, » he said, adding that he envisioned a theoretical « European Google » and a « European Facebook » to arrive in the continent that would also be subject to the new levy.
The EU has long been critical of tech giants for paying too little in tax, with a 250 million euro ($289 million) fine being dished out at Amazon last year over alleged « illegal tax benefits. » Ironically, President Donald Trump has repeatedly lashed out at Amazon for similar reasons.
« You have internet giants which do not pay the same level of taxation as our own SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), » Le Maire told reporters during a press conference. « We can no longer accept to have our SMEs paying 40 points more of taxation than Google, Amazon or Facebook . »
