A first discussion on how the EU should handle Trump's new presidency was held at a working dinner between the EU countries' heads of state and government on Thursday evening.
A cautious discussion, notes Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (The Moderate Party).
Everyone went through their picture of the situation, what one can expect. But no one knows yet. Everyone understands that a new administration must be in place before one can draw any conclusions, says Kristersson on his way to Friday's continued EU meeting in Budapest.
Important Link
The talks did not become very detailed, mostly focusing on "European core interests": Ukraine and trade issues.
According to Kristersson, there is at least an agreement on how important cooperation with the USA is, regardless of who is in charge.
We can have different opinions on different issues, but we cooperate with the USA. The transatlantic link is important, says Kristersson and emphasizes that the EU countries see both problems and opportunities in Trump's presidency.
Competitiveness
The top meeting in Budapest concludes on Friday with discussions on how the EU can become more competitive – highly important in a situation where one risks losing ground to both the USA and China.
Europe has fallen behind. If we continue to do so, Europe will become a museum, says Kristersson, who calls for tough reforms in various EU countries.
Large public loans are not something he wants to see.
You cannot take shortcuts and hope that European loans can solve competitiveness problems, says Kristersson in Budapest.
