Tariff threats, intimidation, divisive rhetoric: Donald Trump’s negotiating tactics with the EU are as clumsy as they are alienating.
In his latest attempt to undermine EU unity, Mr Trump gathered the chief executives of German carmakers at the White House for direct tariff talks. The meeting came just hours after the US president had proclaimed himself “Tariff Man” on Twitter. Meanwhile in Brussels, his secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, delivered an ill-advised speech that highlighted his love for nationalism and his aversion to the European project.
It is true that European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker tried to pacify growing transatlantic tensions over the summer by offering to negotiate with Mr Trump on industrial tariffs, standards, and reform of the World Trade Organization.