Brussels, Feb 18 (Prensa Latina) The European Union (EU) will react quickly and appropriately if the United States applies harmful tariff measures for the automotive sector of the EU bloc, a source from the European Commission said on Monday.

The European Commission (EC) is aware of the conclusion of an investigation by the US Department of Commerce into the threat to US national security posed by vehicle imports, EC spokesperson Margaritis Schinas said at a press conference.

The official hoped that President Donald Trump would comply with the truce established in July last year with EC President Jean-Claude Juncker not to impose any more tariffs, but if not, he believed that the EU bloc would act accordingly.

The EU will keep its word as long as the United States does the same,' Schinas said.

Under the pretexts linked to the national defense of the United States, the president of that nation ordered a study to the Department of Commerce to evaluate the application or not of new taxes.

After the conclusion of the U.S. investigation, President Trump has 90 days to make the decision whether or not to impose additional taxes on imports of European cars and equipment, which is estimated to substantially damage German exports.

In recent hours, German Chancellor Angela Merkel described it as appalling that the United States views imported European cars as a threat to national security, a measure that would increase tensions between the two sides.

Merkel also added that vehicles made in Bavaria, in southern Germany, did not pose a greater threat than cars made in South Carolina, in the United States, the site of the largest BMW factory in the world.