Are Europe and the U.S. still allies?

Most would argue that Europe and the U.S. are still allies as they maintain strong political, economic, and military ties, primarily through NATO. However, since Trump came back to the White House there has been a shift though as there are fundamental disagreements and philosophical differences between Europe and the U.S. After all, Europe recently even issued an official travel warning to the U.S. based on Trump’s politics. There are primarily disagreements on issues like trade policies, defense spending, and foreign relations, whereas cooperation is still strong in areas like security, technology, and diplomacy. There is also a growing disagreement about democracy and the meaning of free speech.

It is clear that Trump sides with politicians who are unacceptable to the European establishment such as Marine Le Pen in France, the AfD party in Germany, the Vox party in Spain, Nigel Farage in Great Britain, Orban in Hungary and the list of European far-right politicians can go on. Mainstream politician parties are concerned about losing their power and are doing everything they can to stop the growing far-right parties, but it seems just a matter of time that the far-right parties will increase in power and become the dominant party in several major countries such as France, Germany and the UK.

Trump promotes and supports this revolutionary change in Europe, and it is happening right now and will continue to develop over the next few years. Trump’s support legitimizes these parties, and they are growing at a rate that would be unthinkable only a few years ago. It also creates new partnerships between the U.S. and a new generation of politicians in Europe. There are many common causes that galvanize Trump and the European far-right parties such as the defense of borders against illegal immigration, focus on national job creation, and the fight against the corrupt establishment. In Europe, this means not only the national political establishment, but also the corrupt bureaucrats in Brussels and the EU.

There are signs of growing divergence between the U.S and Europe in some areas. In defense and security, the U.S. has pushed European nations, especially within NATO, to increase defense spending. Meanwhile, Europe has been exploring more independent defense initiatives, such as the EU’s Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and discussions of strategic autonomy from the U.S. Trump has long told Europe that they need to spend more on defense, at least 2% of their GDP. There is also a growing change with energy and climate policy. The EU has pushed for extreme climate policies, while the U.S. approach has been more mixed. The EU’s green Deal and carbon border tax policies have created some friction with American industries. Another area of friction is technology regulation. Europe leads in regulating Big Tech, with stricter data privacy laws and digital market rules, whereas the U.S. has a more market-driven approach. This divergence creates challenges for American tech giants operating in Europe.

As seen in recent weeks, there are significant disputes over tariffs, regulations, and economic policies that have surfaced, especially concerning subsidies for industries such as electronic vehicles and technology. American voters seem to back Trump in his efforts to have fair trade with Europe. In many cases, Europe impose much higher tariffs than the U.S. does, and Trump is determined to rectify this discrepancy. As the U.S. is a major export market for European luxury goods, beverages and cars among other products, the European will likely fight back, but lose in the end as the U.S. market simply is too important to lose.

There is also a growing divergence between Europe and the U.S. when it comes to China. While both sides view China as a strategic competitor, the U.S. takes a more confrontational approach as it sees communist China as an adversary built on corruption, oppression and animosity. Trump really think China is based on a horrible system and truly sees the country as an enemy. Europe and the EU are weaker in its stance against China and tends to balance economic cooperation with strategic caution. Some European nations such as the export-dependent Germany are hesitant to fully align with U.S. policies on restricting Chinese investments and technology. Also here, American voters are firmly behind Trump as they see China as an adversary.

This is also some geopolitical tension between Europe and the U.S. While both support Ukraine, some European countries have expressed concerns over long-term U.S. commitment. Trump wants an end to the conflict, but the Europeans seem more willing to drag it out and seems to have unreasonable demands on Russia and want to be part of the long-term solution with a borderline colonial thinking, which would include deployment of European troops in Ukraine and tying the country closer to Europe by joining EU and potentially also NATO. The Europeans seem unrealistic and seem to overestimate their power.

It seems to be a good time for the U.S. to be tougher with Europe and form new European political alliances. The U.S. has an opportunity to grow its energy export to Europe and by imposing fair trade, also increase exports of several American products. By building closer relations with Trump-friendly European politicians, there will potentially be more of a common ground going forward. There might even be a moment with focus on Make Europe Great Again, similar to the current nationalism in the U.S. This might sound like a contradiction and paradox as it would form a global international nationalistic movement. This would also mean that the U.S. and Europe would drift further from each other, as both would focus more on their own respective domain. So, are Europe and the U.S. still allies? Yes, they are but the relationship is changing and will likely change even more eventually.