Trade war between Europe and the United States

If the European Commission makes the sanctions against the United States operational, the trade battle between Washington and Brussels will increase and will invest even more in the political aspects and relations between the two parties. In Europe it is believed that the US has provided state aid to the Boing company and the controversy is already before the World Trade Organization, the European Union has demanded compensation that must take place through sanctions against US goods for an amount equivalent to twelve billion dollars, which could be increased to twenty billion US dollars to widen the potential number of producers to hit. This scheme is part of the contrast that the American president has inaugurated with his trade policy, based on the introduction of duties also on goods and services from allied countries. The merchandise sectors that the European Union wants to hit belong to the production areas in which the Trump voters are present in greater numbers. This fact shows how the contrast has become strong and also how the two parties are proceeding in a reciprocal and progressive distancing. If the European intention were to materialize it would have the significance of a declaration of war on the United States; moreover the maneuver is justified by the American attitude, until now insensitive to a negotiated resolution of the commercial question. Trump has come to terms with China, with mutual benefit, but with Europe there is a tightening up due to the fact that the White House believes that Europe is in debt to the United States, both on the trade side and from that of military defense contributions. Trump has already thought of some retaliation, such as that of exacerbating the specular struggle with the European one on the air sector, accusing Brussels of helping its aeronautical industry and, on this basis, of inserting duties for about eleven billion dollars on European products, which will go to hit above all foodstuffs. That on agricultural products is a battle that has a very political value precisely because the sanctions are applied in both directions: Trump sees his electorate hit and protects it in a similar way, however it is not the same type of products and this comparison risks provide only damage to the two parties, without the gains that a trade war should also provide. Undoubtedly the initial mistake was Trump, but Europe has adapted, even if after useless attempts to try to change the mind of the Americans, and now the escalation of the commercial war seems irresolvable. Transatlantic relations are at historic lows and this cannot favor any of the two contenders: bad relationships do not favor collaborations both in commercial, military or foreign policy; that is, one assists, that is, in a reciprocal decoupling from the respective duties of an alliance, which can go as far as to justify a dialectic in constructive deterioration. It should be considered that this state of affairs, besides weighing on the respective advantages of a relationship between international subjects, favors the adversaries, whether they are called China or Russia. The lesser western cohesion favors policies contrary to both the US and Europe and the rapprochement between Brussels and Beijing is a direct consequence of it. The European limit is well known: too much concentration on the economic aspect to the detriment of foreign and defense policy: the evaluation is beyond myopic, as the three themes are complementary and cannot be separated. Looking only at the commercial result in the short or medium term does not shelter Europe from possible conquest, on the other hand if we want to face Trump on his plan, in the long run, we must have political and military autonomy: a condition now necessary , also in function of the progressive isolationism imposed by Trump. Europe must therefore organize itself and not wait for the election of a new president in favor of it.