FILE PHOTO: Peter Beyer, Coordinator of Transatlantic Cooperation in the Field of Intersocietal Relations, Cultural and Information Policy for the German government speaks during an interview with Reuters in Berlin, Germany, November 2, 2018. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

BERLIN (Reuters) - A senior German official said on Thursday the European Union had no choice but to threaten tariffs on U.S. imports in a dispute over aircraft subsidies, but he hoped trade tensions would not affect talks with Washington over a broader trade agreement.

Transatlantic coordinator Peter Beyer said the EU’s list of potential tariffs sent the right signal given the U.S. failure to eliminate subsidies to U.S. planemaker Boeing Co.

“At the same time, I really hope that these renewed strains of trade relations do not affect the pending discussions about a trade agreement with the United States,” he said in a statement.