German foreign minister: Won't cave in to US trade threats

Germany's foreign minister says European countries won't cave in to U.S. threats in the escalating trans-Atlantic dispute over tariffs, but he hopes for a solution.

The Trump administration has already imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from the 28-nation European Union and is threatening tariffs on cars, trucks and auto parts — a key industry for Germany. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker visits Washington on Wednesday.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told ARD television on Tuesday that he hopes it will be possible to find a consensus solution.

But he added: "We won't let ourselves be threatened and just cave in because, if we do that once, I fear that we will have to deal with such behavior very often in the future, and we won't accept that."