The following was a statement that I had initially missed from the cabinet meeting that took place last week. Via Reuters: The EU was created to ‘screw the US’ , says Trump.
“The European Union has been, it was formed, in order to screw the United States. I mean, look, let’s be honest. The European Union was formed in order to screw the United States. That’s the purpose of it. And they’ve done a good job of it. But now I’m president.”
Video at the link.
This is utter nonsense, as Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat, noted on Face the Nation.
Europe is a peace project. You know, it was created so that we wouldn’t have wars between the members of European Union, and we haven’t had.
For those who dozed off in history class, it is worth noting that both World War I and World War II started as great power conflicts in Europe, with countries like Germany and France as central beligerents. The 19th Century was rife with European wars, including things like the Napoleonic Wars, the Crimean War, and the Franco-Prussian War. Indeed, the history of Europe prior to the end of the Second World War is a long string of wars, large and small, over territory and power. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a throwback to that era.
Since the end of WWII, however, there has been no continental war in Europe, and indeed, the continent has been, in relative terms, quite peaceful. Exceptions include the wars created by the breakup of Yugoslavia and various actions by Russia against former Soviet republics.
But there is no arguing that the period from 1945 to 2025 has been radically more peaceful than the prior two centuries (and more) of European history.
Two of the most significantly positive steps towards a more peaceful world stage were the creation of NATO and the European Union. Putting these actors, who historically fought one another, into a shared institutional framework has been a historical success. The creation of profound economic interdependence in Europe was meant, among other things, to make war between European powers unthinkably costly. And, further, to create deep and abiding ties among the member states. It was mostly assuredly not created to “screw the United States.” Trump’s belief on this count is warped.
All of this reminds me, to a degree, of anti-vax nonsense. People assume that the current state of the world just, you know, happened, and so there is no risk in letting things degenerate to a prior state of being.
Beyond that function, the EU is a massive market where the US sells its products, and yes, we buy theirs. Trump’s myopic understanding of economics utterly ignores the value created by a vast, global marketplace. And the fact that the US dominates the defense space means that we are in the driver’s seat in such matters. While there is an argument to be made that Europe is not adequately footing the bill on military matters, Trump seems not to understand that much of US power comes from its hegemonic position in this arena.
If Europe were to arm itself the way the US does, that would be a threat to US power and dominance. Or, as noted above, we could see great power conflict return to the continent, which will ultimately be good for no one.
It’s as if those who refuse to learn the lesson of history (and diplomacy, economics, science, et al.) are doomed to repeat them.
Or something.
