Donald Trump is running for re-election - risks and opportunities for transatlantic relations
ADVERTISEMENTThe race for the White House is on, and Donald Trump is ready to give it another go!
To say that his announcement, though not surprising, will not be met with enthusiasm on this side of the Atlantic, would be a crass understatement.
EU-US relations have turned too sour under Trump's watch.
The US, once leader of the free world, needs a President that would not spread hate, top EU politician Guy Verhofstadt said on Twitter.
At this point, a re-election of Trump next year could go either way, this analyst believes.
"If he continues along the path that he's on and the way in which he has, I think, consciously been pushing the Europeans hard and uncomfortably and in a way that they are not accustomed to, yes, it's quite possible that in another four years the relationship could be much more divisive.
But one thing that I think Europeans need to bear in mind is that when George W. Bush ran for a second term, the policy in his first term and his second term were very different, specifically with respect to the EU. So it's not impossible that Mr. Trump too can make a change."
Europeans are very unhappy with the changes Trump did make during his first term.
Right now they are desperately trying to save what is left of the Iran nuclear deal, once hailed as a huge diplomatic breakthrough.
Complicating the matter are the latest tensions in the Persian Gulf for which Washington blames Tehran.
And finally there are the bilateral trade relations that have gone worse under Trump.
So far there have been no tariffs on European cars - yet Trump might want to save those for his second term.