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Europe
German foreign minister: Europe will not bow to Trump threats
2018-07-25
[PRESSTV] German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has warned that Europe
...also known as Moslem Lebensraum...
will not give in to threats by the administration of US President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
, amid a global trade war between the EU states and Washington.

"Europe will not be threatened by President Trump. If we cede once, we will often have to deal with such behavior in the future," Heiko Maas said in a post on Twitter on Tuesday.

"No one has an interest in having punitive tariffs, because everyone loses in the end," said the foreign minister of Europe's biggest economy.

Separately, Maas told the German public television, "We in Europe must stick together...I hope that we succeed in resolving this via consensus but we will not be threatened and climb down so easily."

Elsewhere in the remarks, the top German diplomat hoped that a planned visit to Washington by the chief of the European Commission could prevent an all-out trade war. "It is good that Jean-Claude Juncker will be in Washington tomorrow to talk and to seek a solution but we are not heading to negotiations with a pistol at our chest. I don’t think threats bring us closer to a solution."

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is due to meet with Trump to discuss the imposition of US tariffs on EU steel and aluminum and his threats to expand those measures to European cars.

European Commission front man Margaritis Schinas told a news conference on Monday that Juncker would not arrive in the United States for talks with US President Donald Trump with a specific trade offer. "I do not wish to enter into a discussion about mandates, offers because there are no offers. This is a discussion, it is a dialogue and it is an opportunity to talk and to stay engaged in dialogue."
Posted by:Fred

#22  Grom points out the real existential threat —-
Shortages of beer bottles and CO2.

Call Air Liquide, stat!
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2018-07-25 22:11  

#21  Trump's approach reminds me of the joke:

t seems a farmer was complaining to a friend about the trouble he was having in getting his stubborn mule to move. After listening to the farmer's complaint, the friend said he knew just what to do.


"Get a two-by-four and whack the mule across the head with all your might," advised the friend. The farmer was taken aback. "But how will that get him to move?" asked the farmer. "Well, you see," the friend said, "first you've got to get his attention!"

He's getting their attention.
Posted by: AlanC   2018-07-25 19:55  

#20  ON NON-AUTO INDUSTRIAL GOODs.
So the EU, still, will not even talk autos or food or resources?
Posted by: 3dc   2018-07-25 17:52  

#19  "I think Trump's heavy-handed policy will fail."...


Trump, Juncker Announce Deal Pulling Back From U.S.-EU Trade War
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2018-07-25 17:14  

#18  The EUSSR has a trade surplus with the UK
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2018-07-25 15:59  

#17  The U.S. has a trade surplus with Canada or Brazil.
Fair?
Posted by: European Conservative   2018-07-25 15:18  

#16  Poor EU , they don't have money for self-defense or for fair trade, but plenty of money for funding "human rights" groups - attempting to subvert other democracies, or outright terrorists like "Palestinians".
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2018-07-25 15:10  

#15  EC is getting delusional.

Tmay is just negotiating very badly because she's the establishment remainiac picked for the role after they nobbled Andrea Leadsom.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2018-07-25 15:00  

#14  Nevertheless, the EU has remained remarkably united in the negotiations

Uh huh. Like Hungary, Italy, German opposition on Immigrants?
Posted by: Frank G   2018-07-25 14:41  

#13  FUCK EUROPE.

These assholes have been nonstop protesting demanding we get the fuck out forever. What's wrong with giving them what they want?

They want a life independent of us, where they are not dragged into our wars like Afghanistan. Let's give it to them.

Europe profits to the tune of $150 billion *every goddamned year* because of our stupidity. The horrible Iran deal was $120 billion once. The wall is $25 billion once. Free university for every American is $60 billion every year. Do you begin to understand just how bad the deal is with Europe?

Why are we bribing "allies" to be on our side? Fuck them. Spend the money on ourselves instead.

When every apple is rotten, what do we lose by upsetting the apple cart?
Posted by: Herb McCoy   2018-07-25 14:40  

#12  @Bobby

I think Trump's heavy-handed policy will fail. Here's why:

Like Trump, the British have tried to divide the EU. And like the U.S. they also have considerable economic potential.

Nevertheless, the EU has remained remarkably united in the negotiations. British Brexit hardliners now speak of national humiliation in this context, and with good reason. Their hope that the economy - above all the German car industry - will force the EU to soften its hard line has been shattered. The reason is simple: the cohesion of the EU's single market is much more important to the economy in the long term than enabling the British to enjoy a pleasant Brexit. To this end, EU-27 industry and governments are prepared to accept short-term losses if necessary.

The situation is similar in the dispute with the USA: rule-based global trade will in the long term be much more important for Europe than US tariffs.
Posted by: European Conservative   2018-07-25 14:38  

#11  Europe will not bow to Trump threats

Is that right?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2018-07-25 13:51  

#10  >"harmonize" regulations within the EU.

Every country seems to get the worst set of regulations...

Be much better off bi-lateral trade deals and international trade standards, with the "comply or explain (clearly on packaging)" methodology.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2018-07-25 11:27  

#9  Always appreciate your point of view, EC.

Unfortunately, some in the U.S. are tired of the 'status quo' and are willing to upset the apple cart (so to speak) to try to get a better deal.

Admittedly, Trump's approach is more 'brute force' than subtle. I say, give him six months.
Posted by: Bobby   2018-07-25 11:00  

#8  I'd just like to make the case that a trade war is absurd and will only hurt both sides.

Abolishing tariffs wouldn't be such a difficult thing but carefully check your own tariffs first. Tariffs aren't that big an issue. Regulations are more complicated. Just think how long it took (and takes) the EU to "harmonize" regulations within the EU.

Some regulation serve as a clandestine trade barrier but once again, both sides do it.

Trump thinks he just has to threaten exorbitant tariffs and everybody comes to negotiate. It doesn't work this way and he's actually stabilizing the EU.

I don't like tariffs at all because they are easily introduced and so hard to abolish. Retaliatory tariffs introduced by the EU generate money for the EU. Brussels may come to like the new income. WE pay.
Posted by: European Conservative   2018-07-25 10:20  

#7  More than 70 percent of all foreign direct investment into the United States comes from the European Union.

Its' called capital flight. They can't get good RoI in Europe so they "bank"* their money in the US. Throw in the still though old respect of property (not likely to be found in most of the rest of the world) and 'where else are they going to go?'.

colloquialism - to park or to store
Posted by: Procopius2k   2018-07-25 07:16  

#6  >More than 70 percent of all foreign direct investment into the United States comes from the European Union.

How much of that comes from the country that's Brexiting?
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2018-07-25 07:05  

#5  A concise and useful summary, European Conservative. Thank you.



Posted by: trailing wife   2018-07-25 06:59  

#4  A few facts

1) The European Union and the United States have the largest bilateral trade and investment relationship in the world worth roughly $1.06 trillion)per year and growing. The trade created 6.9 million jobs in the U.S.

2) More than 70 percent of all foreign direct investment into the United States comes from the European Union. This number has doubled over the last 15 years.

3) U.S. companies earn more than twice as much exporting goods to the EU as they do exporting to China - $295.91 billion compared to $135.78 billion in 2017.

3) U.S. companies earn some $106 billion more in corporate profits in the EU than EU companies do in the U.S. When these corporate profits are added to the U.S. trade balance, Washington has no trade deficit with the EU.

4) Some 2.4 million European cars are made in the U.S. every year. Some 60 percent of German cars made in the U.S. are exported abroad. The BMW Spartenburg plant in South Carolina is the biggest BMW factory in the world, employing 10,000 people and exporting out of the U.S. 70 percent of what it makes. Some 70,000 U.S. workers depend on jobs linked to the BMW group.

%) Car tariffs: US 2.5%, EU 10% BUT due outward processing (EU cars parts shipped to the US for assembly) a very large portion of US car imports into the EU is actually subject to a much lower import duty. In 2017, only 1 billion euros out of the total value of US cars imports to the EU of EU 6.5 billion was subject to the full tariff.
Posted by: European Conservative   2018-07-25 06:12  

#3  The EUSSR is the MOST protectionist customs cartel in the world.

It's up to them to lower tariffs.

As rents in the countries are reasonably comparable the tariffs could be reduced to zero.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles   2018-07-25 04:07  

#2  Big boys. You can defend yourselves. You want to be equal, then take full responsibility for your own house and leave us out of it.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2018-07-25 03:14  

#1  It's not lose-lose. America is so far disadvantaged that any disruption to the status quo is an improvement.

If Trump tariffs their autos they are so screwed. I love my president so much.
Posted by: Herb McCoy   2018-07-25 01:12  

00:00