Aboard Air Force One on Sunday night, US President Donald Trump delivered a scathing assessment of US-European trade relations, accusing European countries of exploiting the United States economically and failing to contribute adequately to NATO.
The remarks, aired in full by Fox News, suggest a hardening of Trump’s stance towards Europe ahead of potential negotiations on tariffs and defence spending. Trump, who has frequently criticised transatlantic trade imbalances and NATO burden-sharing, stated that no talks would take place unless the European Union committed to making annual payments to the United States, both retroactively and going forward.
“The problem is that Europe has made a fortune with us,” Trump said. “Europe has treated us very, very badly. China has, but Europe has also. Europe has taken our leaders for a ride.”
The president singled out European automotive and agricultural policies as areas of significant grievance. He argued that while the US imports large volumes of European-manufactured vehicles, European markets remain largely closed to American cars and agricultural goods.
“They don’t take our cars, they don’t take our food products, they don’t take anything. If we take their cars—Mercedes, Volkswagen, BMW—you know, we take their millions of cars. They take no cars,” he said. “Europe’s treated us very badly.”
Trump went on to suggest that the United States had suffered economically as a result of this perceived imbalance. He claimed that Europe had “taken a lot of our wealth away,” and insisted that any future dialogue would be conditional on payments compensating for what he described as years of trade deficits.
“They are coming to the table, they want to talk, but there’s no talk unless they pay us a lot of money on a yearly basis, number one for present, but also for past,” he said.
The President linked these grievances to broader questions of strategic and financial responsibility, particularly within the NATO alliance. Trump reiterated a longstanding complaint that European members of NATO are not meeting their financial commitments, thereby shifting the burden of defence onto the United States.
“This is not sustainable. The United States can’t lose $1.9 trillion on trade. We can’t do that and also spend a lot of money on NATO in order to protect European nations,” he said. “We cover them with military and we then lose money on trade.”
Trump also invoked his electoral mandate to justify this combative stance, stating that the American electorate supports his position on redressing trade imbalances and scaling back overseas commitments.
“The whole thing is crazy, and I got elected on that basis,” he said. “We explained it. The American people understand it a lot better than the media.”
The latest comments are likely to heighten transatlantic tensions already strained over trade, digital taxes, and military commitments. Since taking office, Trump has repeatedly called into question the value of longstanding multilateral agreements, favouring instead bilateral deals which he argues would be more favourable to the United States.
European leaders have consistently rejected the suggestion that the EU is responsible for an unfair trade relationship, pointing to reciprocal tariff regimes and the importance of global supply chains. The European Commission has also maintained that it is committed to reforming the World Trade Organisation and open to discussions on improving transatlantic trade.
However, Trump’s demand for financial compensation as a precondition for talks is unlikely to find support in Brussels. No EU official has publicly indicated willingness to consider such a payment structure, and any such concession would face legal, political, and institutional obstacles within the bloc.
Trump’s remarks come at a sensitive time in transatlantic relations, with both sides preparing for potential changes to trade frameworks and the NATO alliance facing internal pressures over defence expenditure.
Read also:
Elon Musk Tells Europe and America: Ditch the Tariffs or Face Irrelevance
