A new day, a new threat – that seems to be Donald Trump’s mantra as he sets his sights on his new victim – the European Union. Just weeks before his swearing-in ceremony that will officially make him the next US president, Mr Trump today threatened the EU with consequences if it does not reduce the “tremendous” trade gap with Washington.
Donald Trump has demanded that Europe buy most of its oil and gas from the US. He also said that if that did not happen, there would be “tariffs all the way” – the word being capitalized to put more emphasis on the implication that they could be very high.
Writing on his platform Truth Social, Mr Trump said that “I told the European Union that they must finance their massive deficit with the United States by massive purchases of our oil and gas – otherwise, it will do so by all means. Tariff is there!!
Even in his previous term, Donald Trump had said that “for too long, Europe has been riding on America’s back – and we have allowed that to happen.” He threatened at the time to stop all additional US funding to NATO, saying “Europe must also contribute”.
According to the latest US government data, which reflects data for 2022, the current trade deficit of the United States with the European Union is $202.5 billion. While US imports from EU countries that year were $553.3 billion, exports to the EU were billed at $350.8 billion.
Donald Trump wants to quickly correct this trade imbalance. Although his threatening approach may not be the best way to do it, he is sure it will help “make America great again.” He says tariff is his favorite word in the dictionary.
‘Losing to everyone’
Speaking to reporters recently at his resort-cum-residence Mar-a-Lago in Florida, Mr Trump had said, “Our country is losing to everybody right now”. He blames this on the “bad deals” made by successive regimes in the US over the past few decades. He believes tariffs will fix this. “The tariffs will make our country prosperous again,” he told reporters.
Putting his words into action, he has asked his team to prepare an executive order that he will sign on the first day of his second term as President. These include comprehensive tariffs on the import of goods and dealing with immigration laws.
Apart from Europe as a whole, Mr Trump has also threatened America’s three biggest trading partners – China, Mexico and Canada. He has already announced 25 percent import duty on Canada and Mexico and 10 percent import duty against China.
Europe has already begun to look for options beyond the United States as the EU signed a major free trade agreement with four major South American countries – Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. The deal will benefit approximately 700 million people across Europe and South America.
After the deal was signed, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen took a dig at Donald Trump without naming him. “Stronger winds (than the free trade agreement) are blowing in the opposite direction – towards isolation and fragmentation”, he said, praising the free trade agreement and calling it the “trade bride” between Europe and the US.
Whether the tariffs will truly help “make America great again,” or whether America will truly “lose to everyone else” – only Trump can tell.
