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The European Union is preparing for another round of trade talks with the US and warned that it may speed up retaliatory measures if President Donald Trump follows through on his tariff threats, the latest of which includes a 50% levy on steel and aluminum imports.

The European Commission, which handles trade matters for the EU, said Monday it “strongly” regrets the tariff hike — up from an originally planned 25% — and said the move is undermining efforts to reach a solution to the trade conflict.

The EU’s trade chief, Maros Sefcovic, will meet with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Wednesday in Paris and a team from the commission is on its way to Washington to continue technical talks, Commission Spokesman Olof Gill told reporters in Brussels Monday.

“If no mutually acceptable solution is reached, both the existing and possible additional EU counter-measures will automatically take effect on July 14 or earlier if circumstances require,” Gill said. “The commission has been clear at all times about its readiness to act in defense of EU interests protecting our workers, consumers and industry.”

The EU is trying to fast-track negotiations with the US before a July 9 deadline, when Trump said he’ll hit nearly all of the bloc’s imports with a 50% tariff. He’s lashed out at the bloc for being unfair on trade, and has called on the EU to reduce its trade surplus in goods and to lower tariff and non-tariff barriers, such as its value-added tax.

Trump agreed earlier to delay the implementation of tariffs on metals as well as on cars and car parts in a bid to allow negotiations to find a broader trade agreement. The EU also agreed to withhold its own counter-measures.

The EU has approved tariffs on €21 billion ($24 billion) of US goods in response to Trump’s metals levies that can be quickly implemented. They target politically sensitive American states and include products such as soybeans from Louisiana, home to House Speaker Mike Johnson, as well as agricultural products, poultry and motorcycles.

The bloc is also preparing an additional list of tariffs on €95 billion of American products. Those measures, which are in response to Trump’s “reciprocal” levies and automotive duties would target industrial goods including Boeing Co. aircraft, US-made cars and bourbon.

“In the event that our negotiations do not lead to a balanced outcome, the EU is prepared to impose counter-measures including in response to this latest tariff increase,” Gill said.

While warning of further tariffs, the bloc said its priority is to allow space for negotiations and that reducing levies remains the long-term goal.

The commission’s negotiating strategy focuses on critical sectors — such as semiconductors and pharmaceuticals — as well as tariff and non-tariff barriers, Bloomberg reported earlier. The commission will also link its approach to addressing regulatory barriers with its plans to simplify rules.

The industries that Sefcovic will focus on either have already been hit with US tariffs, or have been earmarked for future levies. The EU has proposed deepening cooperation with the US in those sectors as part of a previous proposal shared with the US last week, Bloomberg reported.