Apple has given its most direct confirmation yet that a USB-C-equipped iPhone will happen now that the European Union is mandating that all phones sold in its member countries use the connector if they have a physical charger.

When asked by The Wall Street Journal’s Joanna Stern if the company would replace its Lightning cable, Apple’s senior VP of worldwide marketing, Greg Joswiak, answered by saying: “Obviously, we’ll have to comply; we have no choice.”

As for the timeframe of when we might expect to see USB-C on an iPhone, Joswiak says that the Europeans are the ones who dictate the timing for European customers.

Currently, the law dictates that “all mobile phones, tablets and cameras sold in the EU will have to be equipped with a USB Type-C charging port” by autumn 2024. Joswiak refused to answer whether the company would include the connector on phones sold outside the EU.

He made it clearly apparent, though, that Apple is not pleased about being forced by law to make the switch. Before recognizing that the firm must abide by the law, Joswiak went into great detail about how Apple has always preferred to go its own way and trust its engineers rather than be coerced into adopting hardware standards by legislators . He listed the instances of Micro USB and hearing aid compliance as situations where Apple was pressured to meet arbitrary criteria.

He also suggested that switching the iPhone from Lightning to USB-C would cause a lot more electronic waste (e-waste).

Still, it’s telling what did not come up: a portless iPhone that relies solely on wireless charging – something that would theoretically be allowed. Joswiak made no reference to the company considering its options or exploring alternatives to including a USB-C connector on the iPhone.

Instead, we got a resigned, meandering response that leads to a seemingly inevitable conclusion: USB-C will in fact take Lightning’s place for connecting and charging your iPhone in the future.