Experts tell Ayrotv.com to expect pressure to buy more US weapons, a trade dispute, and possibly a trade war.
European Union leaders took to social media on Wednesday morning to congratulate Donald J Trump on a sweeping presidential election victory in the United States, but few are likely to feel positive about the change of US leadership on security and trade, experts tell Al Jazeera.
“Trump has been very clear that Europeans need to ramp up their defence spending even further. He wants a three percent of GDP pledge and we can expect him to push this hard,” said Anna Wieslander, director for Northern Europe at the Atlantic Council.
NATO members pledged to raise defence spending to two percent of gross domestic product (GDP) after Russia invaded Crimea a decade ago. It has taken them until this year to achieve that, according to NATO, because many states did not act until Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“Europeans have long recognised the need to step up on security and defence, but this realisation has not been matched by resources or true political will,” Wieslander told Al Jazeera. “The systemic threat that Russia poses to European security makes this shift extremely urgent if American engagement decreases. The first thing Europe needs to do now is to take the lead in supporting Ukraine towards victory against Russia.” Trump put pressure on Congress last year to delay $61bn in military aid to Ukraine, and has expressed scepticism about approving further aid, potentially saddling Europeans with that bill in addition to the 43.5 billion euros ($46.3bn) that the EU has already spent.
