Realpolitik with Values: How the EU Should Approach Trump


As of Monday evening Central European Time, Donald Trump will be the new U.S. president. Finally, it is tempting to say, because then all the speculation over what and how Trump will make decisions and carry out his duties will end at last. Some of what people have said and written about the subject since Nov. 5 may prove in hindsight to be intellectuals reading tea leaves. The erratic, at times quixotic manner that characterized Trump’s first term in office has obviously changed very little. But there has been a serious, weeks-long discussion about what could happen if Trump were to end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours. Which was total nonsense the second after Trump made that announcement. It is quite simply not within his power to do that. He has apparently realized that and extended the deadline by six months.

You could take other threats seriously — acquiring the Panama Canal, buying Greenland — because the Russian process of annexing the Crimean Peninsula provides a proven blueprint for such undertakings. And there seems to be no lack of addled heads around the future U.S. president that think it would be “cool” — just as Elon Musk thought it was “cool” when Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg eliminated fact-checking at Facebook, among other platforms. However, one may still be confident that this will not happen.

Still, new realities will soon emerge in Washington that will first affect the American people but will also have consequences in Europe: think tariffs and trade war. With Trump, they’re saying the world needs to adjust to a new realpolitik, which can best be described as interest-driven politics, but at worst will devolve into ruthless power politics. This perspective also explains the excitement among right-wing populists and extremists in Europe over Trump and his billionaire friend from the tech industry. The change brewing in U.S. politics has little to do with the values-based approach that Europeans have preferred until now. Trump’s leitmotif is might makes right.

For that reason, we should listen to those in the EU who recommend approaching the Trump administration as equals and not meekly capitulating. That also means standing by the values and principles that Trump and his abettors want to displace, not only in the U.S. It is in Europe’s interest to retain the Digital Services Act regulations in the face of the social media acting outside their sphere of influence. The law, which Musk & Co. have described as an instrument of censorship that limits free speech, is a tried and true method of countering the fake news, lies, hate speech and manipulation that undermine our democracies.

Thus, the EU nations should hand Trump a values-based realpolitik, though even practitioners of realpolitik are bound to rely on at least a minimum of values. It is necessary to stand strong. For that, however, the 27 members of the EU will have to remain united. Will they succeed in doing so in the next four years?

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