European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has said the European Union (EU) will be “pragmatic” in its dealings with the new US administration but would “protect its interests”.
In an opening address to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos in the wake of Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president, she said the EU stood “ready to negotiate” with Mr Trump.
The US president has threatened to impose tariffs on European imports, a move that could spark a tit-for-tat trade war between Brussels and Washington.
“A lot is at stake for both sides,” she said.
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In what appeared to be a swipe at Trump, Von Der Leyen said: “with Europe, what you see is what you get. We play by the rules. Our deals have no strings attached.”
In her speech, she highlighted the close economic ties between Europe and the US, noting that trade between the two regions was valued at €1.5 trillion and represented 30 per cent of global trade.
“So our first priority will be to engage early, discuss common interests, and be ready to negotiate. We will be pragmatic, but we will always stand by our principles,” she said.
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However, she warned the rules of engagement between global powers are changing and that Europe “should not take anything for granted”.
The commission president used her speech to urge EU countries to work more closely together in the face of the fragmenting global economy.
The world has entered “a new era of harsh geostrategic competition,” she said.
The co-operative world order imagined 25 years ago has not materalised and the global economy is now “fracturing along new lines” with supply chains being “weaponised”, a reference to Russia’s energy blackmail.
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Major economies are “vying for access to raw materials, new technologies and global trade routes,” and as this competition intensifies, so will sanctions, export controls, and tariffs, she said, noting global trade barriers tripled in value last year.
“In the last 25 years, Europe has relied on the rising tide of global trade to drive its growth. It has relied on cheap energy from Russia. And Europe has too often outsourced its own security. But those days are gone,” she said.
China’s vice-premier Ding Xuexiang warned Davos attendees that there were no winners in a trade war. “Protectionism leads nowhere. Trade war has no winners,” he said.
While globalisation will bring tensions and disagreements, these issues could only be resolved in the process of promoting economic globalisation, he said.
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