D.Tusk vs. D. Trump
The meeting between the United States and Russia makes Europeans’ hair stand on end. Maybe for this reason and as a kind of warning, Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, asked his namesake Trump to remember who U.S. allies were. Europe is tired. In recent months the European Union and the United States have maintained large differences in terms of foreign policy and economy and both partners are widening moving away. Europe considers that the current geopolitical situation is critical, due to the increasing positioning of China and Russia but, above all, because of the rudeness of President Donald Trump who has not hesitated to set tariffs to punish Europeans.
"It's always worth knowing who your strategic friend is and who your strategic problem is", Tusk recalled during the signing of a joint statement between the E.U. and NATO with the presence of Jens Stoltenberg. Tusk was clearly refering to the meeting that Trump will have with Vladimir Putin. It is known that despite the apparent political and economic opposition, Donald Trump has repeatedly declared his admiration for the Russian president. In addition, suspicions of Trump's role in the possible collusion of Russia in the 2016 elections have not yet been clarified.
Europe sees Russia as its main enemy, despite the participation of the Eurasian nation in anti-terrorist conflicts such as the elimination of ISIS forces. Recently, the United Kingdom and other European bloc nations allied themselves to implement measures against Moscow after the Serguei Skripal’s case, which still have many doubts unclarified. On the other hand, Vladimir Putin agrees that Russia since the time of the tsars has been considered a threat to Europe. The irony of the enmity between Russia and Europe is that the Russians have had success in cracking down on the threats of the old continent, like they did to Napoleon and Hitler.
Donald Tusk also urged the U.S. head of state to be supportive of his allies, one day before the summit of NATO, a military alliance that has been largely criticized by the American leader.
"Money is important" but "true solidarity" is even more, emphasized the European leader and considered false the idea that “the United States protects Europe from its enemies ".
The president of the European Council recalled that "Europe was the first to respond on a large scale when the United States was attacked and called for solidarity on September 11 (2001)". “European soldiers have fought side by side in Afghanistan, 870 brave men and women gave their lives", Tusk said.
Meanwhile, Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, has ensured that the EU and NATO are "the most natural partners" and that the reinforcement of their cooperation "is a matter of security and common sense". "We share the same values and the same commitment to freedom and democracy, and of course, we face the same challenges and threats", he said.
The recommendation was made after Trump, from Twitter, criticized NATO's funding system. According to the White House’s tenant, the United States remains the largest contributor to the joint military force, a fact he calls abusive. "It is not fair or acceptable", he twitted a few days ago after sending letters to several European countries, including Spain, to recall them the commitment to the organization.
This time the president of the European Council, Donald Tusk, remembered that Europeans are investing in this field more than Russia and as much as China. He also suggested Donald Trump to value his allies because the reality is that "he does not have many". However, he left doors open to avoid Trump’s future disapprovals in Twitter and encouraged the community nations to meet the commitments on rising the defense spending and on security.
The President of the European Council has made these statements in an appearance after signing, together with Juncker and Stoltenberg, a joint declaration between EU and NATO to strengthen cooperation between booth agreements. Paradoxically, and despite the fact that German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron have stood up, Europe continues to yield to the claims of the United States. This time, Tusk asked the members of the bloc to raise defense costs, a claim made by the US president a few days after taking office and that he constantly highlights at each summit in which a European member participates.
Figures recently revealed shows that the European Commission has proposed increase the costs of defense to 27,500 million in the period between 2021 and 2027.