Trump's trade war is a gift to Europe-Asia relations

US hostility to allies is opening the door to new alignments grounded in democracy and multilateralism

Avatar
2025-04-17 Trump EU

Already, the Trump presidency has reinvigorated trade negotiations between the European Union and Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. © Reuters

Eoin Drea is senior researcher in the Belgium-based Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies.

For Europeans, the second Trump presidency didn't take long to live down to our worst fears. Vice President JD Vance's speech at the Munich Security Conference in February signaled an American approach increasingly hostile to Europe's core economic and cultural values. This was followed by President Donald Trump's assertion that the European Union was actually formed to "screw" the U.S.

Sponsored Content

About Sponsored ContentThis content was commissioned by Nikkei's Global Business Bureau.