Europe will respond accordingly to any tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, the European Union's economic commissioner told CNBC on Wednesday.

"If it's necessary to defend our economic interests," Valdis Dombrovskis told CNBC's Steve Sedgwick on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. We will respond in an appropriate manner."

"We are ready to defend our values ​​and our interests and rights if necessary," he added.

Since taking office on Monday, Trump has repeatedly threatened to impose tariffs on EU goods entering the United States, telling reporters that the EU "has been very, very bad to us. So they're going to be subject to tariffs. That's the only way... you just There will be fairness.”

He also said his government was discussing imposing an additional 10% tariff on imports from China starting in February.

Dombrovskis said that the United States and Europe are strategic allies, and geopolitical and economic cooperation between the two sides is very important.

He said European officials were in talks with their U.S. counterparts to find "pragmatic" solutions to the tariffs, noting that if economic ties between the two countries were harmed, global economic growth could be affected.

“Maintaining this trade and investment relationship is important because a fragmentation of the global economy will emerge, and there is a real risk of this happening, with the International Monetary Fund estimating that it would mean a reduction in world GDP of up to 7%,” Dongbu Rovskis said.

The European Commission said the EU was keen to maintain economic ties with the United States, noting they had the largest bilateral trade and investment relationship and "enjoyed the most integrated economic relationship in the world."

The trade balance has been a particular issue for President Trump. The EU will have a goods trade surplus with the United States in 2023, but a deficit in services during the same period.

According to data from the European Commission, in 2023, the EU exported goods worth more than 502 billion euros ($522 billion) to the United States, while importing more than 340 billion euros, resulting in a surplus.

Economists and financial institutions have warned of the potential impact of punitive trade tariffs on the global economy.

Gita Gopinath, first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said on Wednesday that the threat of U.S. tariffs and other domestic stimulus measures such as tax cuts and deregulation pose negative risks to other countries.

"With positive market sentiment, many of these shocks may ultimately have some degree of upside impact in the United States and pose downside risks to most of the rest of the world," she said.

However, she added that it would be important to "wait and see what happens" in terms of the exact number, level and scope of U.S. tariffs and how other countries respond.

The International Monetary Fund kept its global economic growth forecast basically unchanged on Friday, predicting economic growth of 3.3% in both 2025 and 2026, below the historical average of 3.7%. It said the forecast was driven by upward revisions to U.S. economic growth offsetting downward revisions in other major economies.

Gopinath said the forecast did not take into account Trump's recent comments on global tariffs, including new threats against the European Union, Canada, China and Mexico on Tuesday.

—CNBC’s Karen Gilchrist contributed to this report.