Defeat for the “Transatlantists”
He did it. As expected, US President Trump has now imposed his protectionist duties on EU steel and aluminium. This is a defeat for the German supporters of a special transatlantic relationship, the so-called “Transatlantiker”.
Altmaier, Maas and many other German politicians had believed in the “transatlantic relations” until the very end. On this subject, he becomes slightly emotional, Altmaier said recently in Brussels.
Now his efforts have failed – but faith lives on. Nevertheless, our “transatlantists” believe that cooperation with the USA must be maintained . What they do not want to see is that relations are not only disrupted in trade.
- Security: The US defends our security, they say again and again. But this believe is strong only in Poland and Germany, in France and Italy the perception is quite different. In addition, the USA is jeopardising European security by terminating the nuclear agreement with Iran and threatening with sanctions. This threatens peace in the Middle East, the “backyard” of the EU – and stability in the international financial system.
- Values: No matter what Trump does, we are still united by common values, and the US is a stable democracy, the “transatlantists” say. That is also questionable. The President and his ministers are attacking the multilateral order that was previously regarded as the guarantor of Western values. Trump’s election was overshadowed by irregularities. Moreover, the candidate has shaken democracy by taking the Republican party by surprise and transforming it for his purposes.
- Institutions: But the US institutions can still be relied upon, say the transatlantists, after all they are even investigating Trump and his environment. But even this is deceptive. So far, only the “Deep State” has been successful, i.e. the secret services and the military, which diverted the president from his originally pro-Russian and anti-interventionist course. The recent Russian sanctions and the US march in Eastern Europe show where the journey is headed…
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator