Concern over Donald Trump's double ambush on Europe is palpable in Brussels. On one hand, the President of the United States demands that European countries invest much more in Defense, even abandoning them in the face of the threat posed by Russia. And at the same time, he unleashes a global trade war, which threatens to generate an economic crisis and, consequently, will make it even more difficult to increase military spending.
An unequivocal sign that this concern is very real was the press conference held by the Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Mark Rutte, after the meeting of Foreign Ministers that took place on Thursday and Friday in the European capital. Questions on how to combine the trade war, the potential crisis, and the increase in Defense spending piled up, and the former Prime Minister of the Netherlands could barely dodge them.
Rutte requested that both issues remain "separate," something that, however, seems very complicated. Because the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, arrived in Brussels on Thursday demanding a very significant increase in investment. "The events of recent years, with a large-scale land war in the heart of Europe, are a reminder that military power remains necessary as a deterrent. We want to leave here with the certainty that we are on the path, a realistic path for each and every member to commit and fulfill the promise to reach 5% of spending," he stated.
And also because he did so just hours after Trump declared the day of "national liberation." "It is a harsh blow to the world economy. The consequences will be disastrous for millions of people around the world," summarized the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, after learning about the content of this tariff offensive. She also warned that inflation will rise, that medicines, transportation, or food will become more expensive. The Commission itself estimated that European exports will face a surcharge of up to 81 billion euros due to reciprocal tariffs, measures on steel and aluminum, and also in the automotive sector. In other words, all the ingredients for a crisis.
Therefore, the European Union is actively seeking new partners. A very clear example of this is that when Trump announced his measures, Von der Leyen was in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, where she attended the first bilateral summit between the European Union and the Central Asian region. And yesterday, within the framework of that same meeting, she announced an investment of 12 billion to open new trade routes and investment flows in Central Asia, a region that holds 40% of the world's reserves of manganese, as well as lithium, graphite, and other critical raw materials.
"Some are only interested in exploiting and extracting them," pointed out the head of the Executive. The EU, on the other hand, aims to be a partner in the development of local industries, as she explained, and will enable "new investments that will strengthen sovereignty." "This partnership will strengthen the ties between our two regions, generate new cooperation opportunities, whether in the energy sector or security, from digital to tourism, and bring people from all our regions together," she added.
And almost at the same time, the European Commission's Trade spokesperson, Olof Gill, announced that the EU will encourage member states to finalize the agreement with the Mercosur bloc as the "geopolitical reality is becoming increasingly unstable." "It is more important than ever to have strong rule-based partnerships for mutual benefit with trusted partners worldwide," he continued during the daily press conference, emphasizing that "free trade is and will remain a top priority on the EU's trade agenda."