Comment: Union in the EU against Trump

How did Jean-Claude Juncker do that? The President of the Commission of the European Union (EU) has achieved more than he hoped during his visit to the White House. In a statement issued after the meeting with US President Donald Trump, "a new era of friendship and close commercial cooperation" was evoked, the goal being "d & # 39; completely eliminate customs and non-tariff barriers ". All of this follows the aggressive speech that the Trump administration has used against the EU and especially Germany for months.

Faced with this attitude, we did not expect a miraculous result of the meeting at the White House. President Trump announces that Europeans are not acting fairly in all media, claiming that the EU is hostile to them and that they will apply tariffs to cars imported from Europe. One day before Juncker's visit to Washington, EU officials had announced that no significant progress was expected.

Trump's Resistance to Americans

One of the answers to the question in the initiative was that Juncker was lucky. In the hours that were planned in Washington, the resistance shown on Trump's trade policy was on the critical point.

As American foreign trade partners, the criticism of the American farmer began to feel the negative consequences of the fact that Congress left, Republican, corporate executives and faithful, but also president of China, Japan, Canada , from Mexico and from Europe.

Of course, Donald Trump is unlikely to accept that it is unfair or erroneous. However, according to the populist who is not right in the White House, it is time (for the moment) to cooperate without conflict and to make it appear victorious to its supporters.

Success comes from unity

In fact, the winner was the European Union. The second answer to the question of how Juncker managed to do it is sought in Europe. The Europeans who tried to override Trump with insults and threats were trade unions. The print shop reacted with backlashes, and the US president did not kneel when he announced that he would impose additional taxes on imported European cars.

No concessions were made. The EU has agreed to import soybeans and other agricultural products containing more liquefied gas than the United States. Trump will try to make this part of the reconciliation a great victory for his constituents. Trump's proposal for a free trade agreement, which was a few days ago, which includes industrial products, will also be commercialized in the "look at how Europeans can sit down at the table".

Will TTIP "light" be possible?

Whereas the EU aspires to the conclusion of such an agreement more than anything else. The proposed agreement will be the "lite" version of TTIP from the Atlantic Free Trade and Investment Agreement, which Trump will issue in 2017.

Trump's tactics has also appeared here: after having broken down what others have done, it means combining the pieces one by one and "helping them one by one". Jean-Claude Juncker came to see Trump's childlike behavior as a grandfather who forgave his grandson's sinking behavior. If this can be helpful in terms of what is left of the European economy and the extreme relations of the Atlantic, this could well be happening.

Did Trump get the lesson?

Europeans must learn that they can succeed by acting in unison with a determined position.

Trump has a lag that can not appease common sense by demonstrating a voluntary consensus. Trump understands only that he has been taught that he can come back to himself when he stifles and presses others.

Trump's anger bursts again, he sees it, and now the Europeans know what they should do if they push the winners up to now. Not sure, Trump will probably announce on Twitter that he is coming out of a deal with Juncker.

Carsten von Nahmen

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