“My place is evident: The USA are an ally within the transatlantic alliance,” von der Leyen advised a press convention marking the primary 100 days of her second time period in workplace. The German politician additionally insisted that Europe’s relationship with the U.S. was “completely totally different” from the one it has with China, brushing apart the necessity for “de-risking” with the US.
However von der Leyen, who’s but to fulfill Trump in particular person since he was sworn in on Jan. 20, did level to quite a lot of issues in world affairs that may be linked to Trump’s actions, with out naming the U.S. president or his nation.
“We see that sovereignty but in addition ironclad commitments are known as into query,” she stated, including that “all the pieces” had turn into “transactional.”
She touted the EU’s current push to signal new commerce offers with third nations, together with the Mercosur bloc in South America, as signaling openness and praised Europe’s “predictability.”
“We now have realized the very onerous approach that sourcing merchandise we want from companions we belief is one of the best ways to keep away from over-dependencies or to keep away from vulnerabilities and blackmail,” she stated.
Certainly, the EU has been compelled to wean itself principally off Russian fuel following years of dependency through the now-destroyed Nord Stream II pipeline. European nations which have purchased billions of euros value of American weaponry now face questions on how reliable these arms are given the U.S. resolution to restrict its weapons’ capabilities within the midst of Ukraine’s defensive warfare with Russia.
