Trump slap in the USA and the EU: crushed between the new axis of evil

Anyone who expects the Republicans to turn away from Donald Trump's insanely aggressive chaos course in US economic policy after the lost midterms is rejoicing too soon. On the one hand, the victorious Democrats are also pursuing a protectionist line that takes no account of ties to “old Europe”. There is a cross-party consensus in Washington on trade policy and the protection of domestic industry.

Secondly, and much more fatally for Europe, the ailing US president will increasingly concentrate on foreign policy given the uncomfortable majority situation at home. In the future, it will probably be more difficult for him to attack and transform state institutions - such as the Fed or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But Trumpism lives on in trade policy despite the midterms. So far, the president has not imposed his erratic tariffs by law, but by decree bypassing Congress.

If things become more difficult for him domestically, he will try to shine in foreign policy. Problem: The increasingly concrete summit with China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin announces a new global “Axis of Evil”. The ailing EU is in danger of being geo-economically crushed between this axis of evil: the three autocrats do not value rules-based trade. In the event of a conflict, important markets for the Europeans would disappear, and there would also be a lack of raw materials and basic products for local goods.

Europe and Germany must therefore become even more strategically independent of their most important trading partners, the USA and China. For the EU, this means continuing to grow together in the internal market, for example in the financial sector. In addition, Europe needs to strengthen cooperation with neighboring democracies. So: exit from Brexit. And: Not only Montenegro, but Canada too belongs to the EU. And: The agreements with Latin America and India should be implemented better and new ones, such as with the Philippines, should be negotiated.

Above all, Europe must become more competitive. It is all the more idiotic when the EU is currently aiming for an end to the combustion engine, which is practically asking manufacturers to produce fossil-fuel cars that are no longer successful on the market.