President Trump warned the European Union on Tuesday that he will ramp up U.S. tariffs on its exports if the 27-nation bloc doesn’t follow through on its promise to invest $600 billion in the U.S.

In July, Mr. Trump and the EU reached the contours of a preliminary trade deal that includes a 15% tariff on most imports from the trading bloc, along with a commitment to invest $600 billion in the U.S. and purchase $750 billion worth of American Energy.

When asked on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” what happens if the EU balks at the investment commitment, Mr. Trump said they will pay a steep price.

“Then they pay tariffs of 35%,” the president said.

“They brought down their tariffs, so they paid $600 billion and because of that, I reduced their tariffs from 30% down to 15%,” he said. “They gave me $600 billion and that’s a gift. They gave us $600 billion that we can invest in anything we want.”

Few details have been made available about the $600 investment commitment, including how it would work or which sectors the EU will target for investment. Mr. Trump said the $600 billion will be invested “in anything I want.”

“Anything. I can do anything I want with it,” Mr. Trump said when asked for more specifics. “And the purpose was they’ve been ripping us for so many years that it’s time they pay up, and they have to pay up.”

• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.