POLITICO: How two wars are pulling Europe and the US apart

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The EU is worried President Trump could abandon Ukraine if the bloc doesn't support him in the Middle East, POLITICO stresses.

Governments are terrified that the U.S. president could retaliate against America’s European allies for spurning his appeals for assistance in the Middle East, primarily by cutting off what’s left of U.S. help for Kyiv, according to four EU diplomats with knowledge of their discussions. As they scramble to avoid a permanent break in the transatlantic relationship, leaders hope their offer of limited support for his action against Tehran will suffice to convince Trump to stay the course in the conflict with Russia.

The war in Iran “must not divert our attention from the support we give Ukraine,” French President Emmanuel Macron said at the end of last week’s EU summit in Brussels.

Why EU leaders are so anxious

It’s easy to see why EU leaders are so anxious. In recent days Trump has repeatedly blasted them for failing to do more to help him unblock the Strait of Hormuz, the shipping route used by about 20 percent of the world’s oil that has effectively been closed by Iran. He has also explicitly linked continued U.S. involvement in NATO to the Middle East conflict.

“NATO IS A PAPER TIGER!” he railed in a Truth Social Post over the weekend. “They complain about the high oil prices they are forced to pay, but don’t want to help open the Strait of Hormuz… COWARDS,” he concluded. “[W]e will remember.”

“There’s a crack right now emerging between, you know, Europe and the U.S., which, again, as an avid pro-American and transatlanticist, I lament,” Finnish President Alexander Stubb said in an interview with the Daily Telegraph. “But it’s a reality that I have to live with. And I obviously try to salvage what I can.”

Missiles like candies

Governments are concerned that the war in Iran is using up missiles and air defense munitions that Kyiv needs itself against Russia, the four EU diplomats, who were granted anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic exchanges, told POLITICO.

Ukrainian negotiators traveled over the weekend to the U.S. for talks with Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. The latter praised the talks as “constructive” in a post, but gave no hint of when negotiations with Russia would resume.

US envoy warns ‘Made In Europe’ plan will damage allied defense

US President Donald Trump’s envoy to the European Union denounced a forthcoming “Made in Europe” plan, warning that it could damage allies’ defense efforts and weaken Ukraine’s ability to fight Russia.

Adopting the proposed rules “would be a serious mistake,” US Ambassador to the EU Andrew Puzder told Bloomberg Radio in an interview, Bloomberg quotes.

His comments come as the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, prepares to unveil the Industrial Accelerator Act, a key pillar of its plan to boost the European economy and stem industrial decline. The package contains local-content requirements, affecting everything from cars to manufacturing. But the final details are still being hashed out as EU member states fight over how much to embrace a “Made in Europe” doctrine.

Puzder’s message illustrates the difficulties facing Europe as it unleashes billions in fresh military and industrial spending. The continent wants that cash to both bolster local manufacturing and reduce overreliance on the US — all without hampering current security arrangements. The US is also leaning on Europe to shoulder more of its own defense, further complicating matters.

The US intervention on “Made in Europe” adds to ongoing opposition from UK, which is lobbying countries including Germany, Italy and the Netherlands to push back against clauses that would exclude Britain from participating in public procurement bids.

Puzder told Bloomberg Radio that the forthcoming rules would be “a direct contravention” of the terms and the spirit of a trade deal the US and EU struck last year.

In particular, Puzder cautioned that the proposed rules would be “a real threat to our defense industrial base.”

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