EU seeks to avoid tension with Trump at crucial NATO summit
The governments of EU countries are urging the European Commission to delay any decisions regarding the USA until June, including imposing retaliatory tariffs, to avoid conflict with US President Donald Trump at the NATO summit in The Hague, reported the "Financial Times" on Thursday.
Diplomats and officials informed the British newspaper that the governments of EU countries are calling on the European Commission to avoid provoking the White House in the period leading up to the Alliance summit in The Hague, which will take place on June 24 and 25.
These actions are supposed to include avoiding public discussions on American trade policy and not criticizing the US approach to Ukraine or American announcements regarding the annexation of Greenland.
According to "FT", European leaders also spoke with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte about how to appease the US president during the summit and urged Rutte to keep the June meeting's agenda to a bare minimum.
Uncertainty before the meeting
A high-ranking EU official, quoted by the newspaper, noted that there is significant nervousness ahead of the meeting in The Hague.
He emphasized that the prevailing approach is to do everything possible to bring Trump to the meeting, tell him what he wants to hear, and ensure he leaves without any major incident.
According to the newspaper, many European leaders fear a repeat of the 2018 NATO summit when Trump dominated the second day of talks and threatened to withdraw the USA from the Alliance.
The EU and NATO are separate organizations, but 23 European countries belong to both. Additionally, Rutte maintains close professional relations with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, noted "FT".
