Donald Trump blasts Europe ahead of G20 summit

Donald Trump blasts Europe ahead of G20 summit
Copyright Reuters
Copyright Reuters
By Pascale Davies
Share this articleComments
Share this articleClose Button

The US president said "Europe treats us worse than China" in an interview with Fox news on Wednesday.

ADVERTISEMENT

US President Donald Trump has taken aim at the European Union ahead of the G20 summit in Japan on Friday.

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, the president said Europe "treats us worse than China" and also blasted EU antitrust cases against tech giants.

He said European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, who he did not name but referenced for her work, was "suing all our companies. We should be suing Google and Facebook and all that, which perhaps we will."

"European nations were set up to take advantage of the United States. They have worse trade barriers than China," Trump said.

Adding, Europe makes it "almost impossible to do two-way business".

Trump has already threatened tariffs on the EU's the automobile sector, a key export for Germany, which has put pressure on the industry.

The US president also returned to a familiar theme and took aim at the payments EU countries make to NATO.

"We pay for close to 100 percent of NATO, people don't know that. Germany doesn't pay what it's supposed to pay," he said

Read more: NATO pledge: Which European countries spend over 2% of GDP on defence?

All eyes will turn to a meeting between Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping over the weekend summit when they discuss their souring trade relationship, which has shaken global markets. 

Want more news?

Share this articleComments

You might also like

'White House preparing executive order to police social media firms'

'We must navigate the explosive trade issues,' says Japan's ambassador in Brussels

Mike Pence: Russian aggression poses 'serious threat' to Europe