VdL: Trustful EU-US Cooperation Backbone Of New Global Alliance

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen addressing the Riga Conference speaks of the future of EU-US relations.

• "Trustful EU-US cooperation must be the backbone of a new global alliance. EU has a lot to contribute. But we need to develop more strength in security. We should invest in our capabilities & in cooperation with NATO."
• The win for Joe Biden in the US presidential election is likely to see Washington mend relations with Brussels after four years of deterioration under President Trump.
• However, if Brussels believes the relationship will be reset to that of pre-Trump administrations it may be mistaken. Trump's hardline stance on EU nations paying their expected proportion of national GDP on defence spending remains a popular position in the US, as was the incumbent's 'America first' policies on trade relations, which saw an escalating trade spat over aeroplane tariffs between the US and the EU. There is no guarantee that the incoming Biden administration will immediately change tack on either of these issues.