French Finance Minister: EU negotiating strategy with US was not vigorous enough

PARIS, July 30 (Reuters) - French finance minister Eric Lombard told reporters on Wednesday that the European Union's negotiating strategy with the U.S. on trade, which led to a framework deal for the U.S. to impose 15% tariffs on most EU goods, had not been vigorous enough.

"There is the issue of the negotiation method, which within the European Union (...) has perhaps not been as energetic or vigorous in certain phases, and this is what the President of the Republic said when he stated that we must improve our ability to be feared and to carry weight in negotiations", Lombard said after a meeting at the finance ministry.