The European Union’s foreign policy leader has accused the United States of intentionally working to fracture European unity, according to remarks published in a Financial Times interview on Friday. The comments from Kaja Kallas come after more than a year of strained relationships across the Atlantic.
“What I think is actually important for everybody to understand is that the U.S. has been very clear that they want to divide Europe. They don’t like the European Union,” Kallas stated during her conversation with the Financial Times.
President Donald Trump has consistently criticized the European Union throughout his current presidency, implementing trade penalties against EU member nations and discussing the potential acquisition of Greenland – a proposal that could potentially dissolve the NATO partnership.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration initiated trade reviews targeting the EU along with several other nations including China, India, Japan, South Korea and Mexico, citing allegedly unfair commercial practices. These investigations could result in additional trade penalties by summer, following the Supreme Court’s decision last month to dismantle significant portions of Trump’s previous tariff framework.
According to the Financial Times, Kallas noted that America’s strategy toward the EU mirrors methods employed by the bloc’s opponents.
She urged EU member states to avoid individual negotiations with Trump, emphasizing instead that they should engage with him collectively, “because we are equal powers when we are together,” as reported by the Financial Times.
Regarding military matters, however, Kallas acknowledged the bloc must “to buy from America because we don’t have the assets or the possibilities or the capabilities that we need,” while emphasizing that Europe should strengthen investment in its own defense manufacturing sector.
