Cracks in the Trump-Europe relationship are turning into a chasm

London CNN — For more than 70 years, the transatlantic alliance has served as the unshakable foundation of European stability and underpinned the values of the US-led Western order. However, longstanding observers of the alliance accept it has been strained over the past four years – and will worsen still if Donald Trump beats former vice president Joe Biden in this year’s US election. She says that as the EU is taking steps toward “building stronger autonomy in the field of security and defence,” Trump tries to “undermine such efforts through his attacks on the European NATO members as well as through economic and trade measures.” The Brussels official explains that Trump’s “break from multilateralism” on big international matters like Iran, coupled with the US taking “less responsibility in European security” has accelerated European thinking to take a step away from America and “do our own thing on the world stage.” This characterization of a hostile US administration that goes out of its way to avoid working with Europeans is one that the EU diplomat recognizes. One European diplomat said: “We’ll dance with whoever is on the dance floor, but it doesn’t take a genius to see that the EU-US cooperation is currently underperforming.” Asked to comment on a potential pivot by the EU away from its historical ties with the US, a State Department spokesperson said: “The United States and the EU share a strong, enduring partnership based on common democratic values and governance, respect for human rights and the rule of law, deep economic ties, and a commitment to Transatlantic prosperity and security. “The question is not really if you can get the relationship back to where it was, but if we can persuade the US to re-join the Western order,” says the EU diplomat.