Ahead of Russia summit, Trump calls European Union 'a foe'
Trump
For US President Donald Trump, a summit with Vladimir Putin risks a political backlash at home and abroad.
On the eve of his meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, USPresident Donald Trump rattled allies once more by labeling the European Union a “foe” with regard to trade.
In a pre-summit interview with CBS News’ “Face the Nation” program aired on Sunday, Trump lumped in the EU with China and Russia as USeconomic adversaries. “I think the European Union is a foe, what they do to us in trade,” he said.
For USPresident Donald Trump, a summit with Vladimir Putin risks a political backlash at home and abroad. For the Russian president, however, the fact the summit is even happening is already a big geopolitical win.
The Helsinki summit, which comes at one of the most crucial junctures for the West since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, has alarmed some NATO allies who fear Putin might seek a grand deal that would undermine the US-led transatlantic alliance.
In recent months, he has also been highly critical of the EU in trade terms, arguing that its policies make it difficult for USexporters.
After Trump labeled the EU a “foe,” Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, responded on Twitter, using one of Trump’s favorite stock phrases.
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“America and the EU are best friends,” Tusk wrote. “Whoever says we are foes is spreading fake news.”
If Trump's instinct is right and he finds common ground with Putin, then the pair's Helsinki summit may take the heat out of some of the world's most dangerous conflicts.
But the Washington-Moscow rivalry has a long history and there are there many points of friction that could yet spoil Trump's hoped-for beautiful friendship.
With the foes at loggerheads over Syria, Ukraine, pipeline policy, espionage and election interference, even Trump cautioned: "I'm not going with high expectations."
The brash billionaire property magnate has been president for 18 months, while the 65-year-old former KGB officer has run Russia for the past 18 years.
The 72-year-old president nevertheless has a high opinion of his ability to woo tough opponents, such as North Korea's Kim Jong Un, whom he met at a summit last month.