“Trump Resolved to Destroy European Union”

An Iranian newspaper says the US aims to destroy the European Union, and Trump is the flag bearer of the collapse of the bloc.

A recent opinion piece published by Jomhouri Eslami newspaper says US President Donald Trump wants Europe to follow Washington’s policies and it seems the EU has to tolerate and accept this humiliating manner, even at the cost of losing their independence.

What follows is the full text of the editorial:
The negative feedbacks of Donald Trump’s visit to Brussels, his participation in the NATO Summit and his trip to Britain, indeed destroyed the credibility of Trump’s America.

During Trump’s recent trips, almost no announcement of cooperation and agreement was made by either European or American leaders. But in practice, he faced serious, organized and widespread opposition that had never been experienced in the history of US-European relations, especially with the NATO.

Trump postponed his trip to Europe and in particular his visit to Britain several times, and eventually headed to Europe in a situation that no one was willing to warmly welcome the President of the United States.

The British people urged him to return home by launching massive demonstrations. They insisted that he must change his policies and stop creating tensions, racism, and humiliating manners in dealing with the other countries.

However, the extent of the protests against Trump had already been anticipated, and that was why he delayed his trip to Europe and in particular to Britain several times.

He did his utmost to find a better chance to be welcomed warmly, but at the end of the day, it was beyond reach.

The British government informed Trump that they were unable to welcome him in London and had to receive him in another place to be able to provide security for him and his companions within highly secure and protected areas.

Trump tried to travel to England at any cost so that people would not say he was dissuaded from his British trip for such matters. But the mass demonstrations in London showed well that even London is not a good place for an adventurer like Trump. Although Britain, in particular since World War II, has been considered as America’s closest ally in Europe and the world, England is not able to welcome Trump in London.

Prior to his trip to Britain, Trump was also completely isolated at the NATO Summit. Although he tried to put pressure on other parties to pay the US’ military expenses on the territory of NATO, he was faced with serious opposition and protests that made the NATO summit tense.

It’s so hard for America’s global diplomacy that Trump and his associates are not only confronted with Russia and China, but also have to challenge with their allies in the NATO. The US at the same time has waged war on the European Union, Canada, Mexico and even Britain as a follower of Washington’s policies in Europe.

During his visit to Brussels where the NATO Summit was held and also in Britain, Donald Trump constantly tried to stabilise himself in a position with a bunch of non-diplomatic and humiliating statements. But in practice, the results were totally vice versa, and it gave rise to a clear and unequivocal isolation for Trump’s America.Perhaps if it was possible for him and his assistants to foresee, they would have cancelled or delayed the journey to Europe.

The fact is that protesting against Trump is not due to his personality. It is the extreme views of Trump and his assistants which elicited such unified and unexpected response.

Trump has problem with the survival of the European Union and explicitly calls for the collapse of the European Union. He personally and formally supported the “Brexit” and has even criticised British Prime Minister Theresa May for her flexibility on the issue of leaving the European Union. He even welcomed and supported France’s exit from the EU, and encouraged the French people to join the supporters of Frexit.

Trump still hopes to see the collapse of the European Union and, in particular, the collapse and destruction of the “Euro” as the single European currency, which will ultimately resolve the growing problems of America by eliminating and marginalizing the economic rivals.

While Britain is on the way to get out of the European Union, and is dealing with the increasing adverse consequences of this painful exodus, Trump is not happy with it yet. With his apparent interference, even the British are humiliated by the United States.

Trump’s sarcastic literature against Theresa May and her government was so blatant and undiplomatic that infuriated the British media, parties and people.

During this trip, Trump even determined the future prime minister of Britain! He hailed the British Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, and said that he is very smart and capable to become a great prime minister.

The US president now introduces immigrants as the main problem for Europeans and calls for taking action against immigrants, which is in fact a form of intervention in European affairs and policies.

The situation is so dire that French President Emmanuel Macron, who at the start of Trump’s job claimed he would not allow the United States to be isolated, is now in the front line of opposition against Trump. He says that France and the European Union have no choice but to confront and deal seriously with the US’ economic and environmental policies, as well as Trump’s positions towards the NATO.

Europe feels that following Trump’s policies will result in its humiliation and dependence. The continuation of such policies has created new trends in US relations with its allies. Washington wants them to follow the US policies and it seems they have to endure and accept this humiliating manners, even at the cost of losing independence. This is the policy that aims to destroy the European Union and has turned Trump into the flag bearer of the collapse of the European Union!

Hibernation How Europe Can Survive the Trump Era

Explosive narcissism and vulgar capitalism: It is impossible to engage in politics with this U.S. president. Europe should resist the temptation to fixate on Donald Trump and instead pursue its own goals. That's the lesson of a deeply disorienting week.

by Dirk Kurbjuweit

Politicians are used to engaging in politics -- either with or in opposition to other politicians. Traditionally, the foreign policy of one nation-state or alliance is confronted by the foreign policy of another nation-state or alliance. That's the way it has been for hundreds of years. But that's not the way it is at the moment. When Donald Trump is involved, politics is not confronting politics. Rather, politics is confronting the bizarre.

There is no precedent for such a situation in the history of the West. That fact is also contributing to the difficulties of practicing politics in this day and age. Politicians, after all, frequently look to the history books for examples to follow and traditions to pursue. But in the history of democracies, the chapter on the bizarre is rather thin. Someone like Trump is a totally new beast and requires a completely novel approach to politics.

That fact can no longer be in doubt following the U.S. president's trip to Europe,including his stopovers in Brussels, London and Helsinki. It makes little sense to hope that Trump might improve. He is the way he is and politicians from other countries have to get used to it. They have to develop a specific strategy for the period during which this president is in office.

For the European Union, the appropriate strategy can be expressed in a single word: hibernation. But that isn't quite as easy as it might sound. We're not talking here about the long, restorative slumber of a bear in her cave. Hibernation in the Trump era requires a complex political concept that Brussels should pursue in lockstep with all member states to the degree possible. Should that happen, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and perhaps even before.

Trump's embarrassing behavior during his trip has two primary causes: his explosive narcissism and his adherence to an extremely vulgar form of capitalism.

In 1989, back when Trump was nothing more than a real-estate tycoon, he suddenly said during a television interview with Larry King: "Your breath is very bad, it really is. Has this ever been told to you before?" Later, Trump explained this impertinence by saying it was a demonstration of his negotiating strategy: putting people on the defensive.

Incapable of Grasping

The last week has shown that it is a concept he apparently pursues in politics as well. He sought to unsettle German Chancellor Angela Merkel by claiming that Germany is a "captive of Russia" on the eve of his meeting with her. And he did the same to British Prime Minister Theresa May, saying just before their face-to-face that her rival Boris Johnson would make a good prime minister. It is vulgar. And it is ineffective. All it does is darken the mood and make it more difficult to find common ground. That, though, is the primary goal of foreign policy -- something that Trump is apparently incapable of grasping.

Regarding narcissism: Trump is constantly employing superlatives to praise his own deeds. Whatever he does, says or thinks necessarily has to be the best, the greatest of all time. On days when he is feeling modest, he might add a qualifier like "probably." One gets the feeling that he is seeking to insulate himself from overwhelming self-doubt. And that is what makes his narcissism so explosive. When doubts arise about his self-proclaimed magnificence, he is more or less capable of anything -- including uttering sentences that many, and not just his opponents, view as treasonous.

His election victory was not nearly as dazzling as he likes to portray it. Hillary Clinton received almost 3 million more votes than he did, with Trump only becoming president due to the peculiarities of the American electoral system. Close advisers and members of his family stand under suspicion of having maintained dubious contacts with Russians during the campaign. U.S. intelligence agencies have evidence that Russian agents interfered in the campaign.