US officials push Europe to continue buying American arms
Washington is not happy with European attempts to limit the participation of US manufacturers in arms tenders, Reuters reports on Wednesday. US officials have told European allies they want them to keep buying American weapons, according to five sources familiar with the matter.
Recent actions by US president Donald Trump, including a temporary halt to military aid to Ukraine and a rapprochement with Russia, have led Europe to reassess the reliability of what was once one of its strongest allies. As a result, the EU recently decided to focus on strengthening its own arms industry in order to reduce its dependence on the United States.
But the Trump administration does not appear to be happy with the outcome. Sources have told Reuters that late last month, US secretary of state Marco Rubio told his counterparts from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia that the US wanted to continue to participate in EU countries' defence purchases.
"They are upset about the ReArm proposal and that the US is being excluded"
According to two of Reuters' sources, Rubio also said that Washington would view negatively the exclusion of US companies from European tenders. Another source, who was not involved in the Baltic meeting, said they too had been warned by US officials that such an exclusion would be seen as inappropriate.
"They are upset about the ReArm proposal and that the US is being excluded," said a senior European source.
Policy contradictions
The US concern about declining European purchases highlights the Trump administration's contradictory foreign policy. On the one hand, Trump treats the EU as an adversary, saying it was "formed to screw" the US, imposing sweeping tariffs and even threatening to annex Greenland.
On the other hand, Trump, like previous US administrations, wants to reap the economic benefits of selling arms to Europe. But those administrations, even Republican ones, have always positioned themselves as pro-European. Trump, on the other hand, has damaged the US's reputation as a trustworthy ally.
Rubio will seek to allay these concerns during his visit to Brussels this week, where he will attend a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. But he will also reiterate that the US expects Europe to continue buying American weapons. "It's a point the secretary has raised and will continue to raise," a US state official said.
PHOTO © Wojtek Radwanski / AFP
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