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After Joe Biden’s victory, Europe can breathe easier.
Trump’s electoral defeat seems to be celebrated throughout the Old Continent, where the Republican presidency has provoked ire and rage several times. Many feared that a new Trump term would cause problems in transatlantic relations. Biden’s victory, according to Politico, transformed relations between Europe and the United States overnight, as it now appears that they will be on the path of mutual respect.
“After the trauma of the Trump years, many European decision-makers will view the Biden presidency as a golden opportunity not only to repair the transatlantic alliance but also to renew and redefine it for decades to come. This case can be very optimistic. “Even if not, a more fundamental question arises: Will Europe seize the opportunity to rebuild the relationship?” Asks Politco.
“It’s not that Biden is an easy partner. Whatever his sympathy for Europe, Biden, like Barack Obama before him, will make it clear that Europeans must stop talking and start acting if they want equal cooperation with the United States and avoid a return to Trumpism four years from now, ”he adds significantly.
The relationship between Biden and Europe goes through 5 areas
Commerce
Trump has declared Europe an “enemy” of the United States on trade and, to prove his point, has imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum, as well as European wines. While there appears to be a friendlier approach, the Biden administration is unlikely to return to the status quo ante overnight. That’s because Democrats were blinded by the power of the free trade issue in 2016. Until Trump judged the party’s agenda, Republicans were free traders. As the world became increasingly global, the Democrats, traditionally the American Labor Party, jumped into this section. Until they lost in 2016, amid Trump’s ridicule that they were “globalized elites.”
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So while it may be easier to seal a trade deal with the Biden administration, it won’t be an easy deal, especially given that the United States’ trade deficit with Europe has risen to more than $ 170 billion.
There are no easy solutions to pressing problems, like Europe pushing for a digital tax on tech giants and the long-running subsidy dispute over Airbus and Boeing. That said, Biden could open the door to the renewal of a transatlantic free trade agreement. The latest push, under Obama, “extinguished” the finish line amid backlash on both sides of the Atlantic. But many European leaders are eager to do it again, especially at a time when their economies are being rocked by the pandemic.
Briefly: Trade is an area that could see a deepening of transatlantic cooperation, but it is also fraught with pitfalls.
Environment
Biden’s victory came too late to prevent the United States from abandoning the Paris climate accord, but that doesn’t mean he can’t return once he takes office. And it will.
For Europe, this will be a crucial gesture of goodwill to show that the United States is once again serious about fighting climate change. It’s an issue Biden has made clear he’s taking seriously, noting during the campaign that he sees the United States phasing out its long-term dependence on oil and gas.
China
Relations between the United States and China are through the roof, a situation unlikely to change with Biden. In fact, the view that China is a long-term threat to American interests in the world is one of the few issues that Democrats and Republicans agree on these days. Europe has not yet arrived. And it may never come.
Although the European Commission has sided with Washington, calling China a “systemic adversary”, not all European capitals share this view. The biggest obstacle is Germany, a country with Europe’s biggest trade efforts with China. Biden will pressure Berlin and other European players to join a US-led coalition of democracies to try to stop China’s growing influence on the international stage. Ultimately, however, the question is more fundamental: Will Europe stay in the United States trying to maintain control of Chinese influence or not?
Defending
2% means 2%. The promise of NATO countries in 2014 to move to spending 2% of GDP on defense will remain on Biden’s agenda. The new US president will also make clear that with the US targeting China, Europe should lead the effort on the continent to counter efforts by Russia and China to build a base.
While Biden has been quick to point out the need to address Russian aggression, he sees China as a long-term threat. It is important to note here that while both France and Germany are expected to play a central role, it is not entirely clear whether they do.
Middle East
It cannot be said that what one thinks of Trump’s foreign policy has not progressed in the Middle East, as tensions between Israel and some of its neighbors are subsiding. This could make it difficult for Biden to make a change and reverse Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, especially if it threatens recent progress. Another obstacle is Iran’s recent behavior. Iran’s leadership has returned to uranium enrichment far beyond what is permitted and has become increasingly hostile to its neighbors.
Biden is likely to attempt some form of rapprochement with Iran, but he is unlikely to fully return to the nuclear deal. At the very least, Europe is likely to get some relief from the threat of US sanctions on its companies and individuals for doing business with Iran.
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