Europe and U.S. relations are facing their “lowest moment” since NATO came into being, former European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said, as Washington’s disruptive approach to diplomacy forces allies to reexamine the transatlantic relationship.
“There are some doubts about the relationship with the United States,” Barroso, also former prime minister of Portugal, said in an interview with CNBC’s “The China Connection” on Monday, pointing to a loss of trust that extends beyond the European Union to include the U.K.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s aim to acquire Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, including threats of possible military action and higher tariffs on European nations, has shaken confidence in the U.S. among European leaders and the public.
The relationship between Europe and the U.S. has become increasingly driven by interests, shifting away from the traditional model of being based on shared “democratic values,” Barroso said, describing the moment as a “rupture phase” in which it remains unclear “where we are going from now.”
While Trump pulled back from a maximalist position, ruling out the use of military force and retreating from his threat of imposing tariffs on European nations aimed at pressuring them to help the U.S. acquire the island, he is sticking with his aim of exerting control on the Arctic territory.
