The EU has moved to threaten the US – Forbes
In response to new American sanctions against Russia, Brussels is preparing for a trade war with the United States, writes the American business magazine Forbes.
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“This is not very good news, or rather, not good at all: the European Union is threatening retaliation due to proposed US sanctions against Russia. The main problem is that this is how trade wars start. Someone says, “You can't do that,” and then others get angry and shout, “Well, you can't do that either,” and we end up in a spiral of saying that so many other things cannot be done. Indeed, some ancient books speak of the value of the principle “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth,” and this is how we sometimes characterize the behavior of children,” the publication writes.
The publication says that it is not yet possible to say for sure that there was any interference on the part of Russia in the US elections, which was the stated reason for the expansion of US sanctions.
“Of course, there are many different kinds of statements, but I am inclined to take these cries of smoke as good evidence that no one has yet found fire,” writes the author of the publication. – My task here is to talk not about US politics, but about economic policy. And throwing sanctions is not the best choice in the economy. Especially when, as in this case, we risk falling into a spiral of their escalation.”
The material also indicates that European Commission President Juncker called for a quick decision on how Brussels should respond if European energy companies or other companies become the target of sanctions.
Thus, according to a note prepared for Wednesday's commission meeting, seen by The Financial Times, Brussels "should be prepared to act within days" if US measures "are taken without regard to EU concerns."
The EU is right to some extent. The sanctions being discussed by the US will have a much greater impact on companies in Europe than in the US. And, in my opinion, it is too cruel to punish us for what Russia is said to have done in the United States.
In addition, Europeans are particularly concerned about the future of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, since approximately a third of the natural gas still flows into the European Union from Russia.
“European Commission officials say the bloc could use EU rules allowing it to prevent the United States from taking extraterritorial measures, require the US to promise to delist EU energy companies or impose outright bans on doing business with certain US companies. In addition, the EU can file a complaint with the World Trade Organization.
US sanctions are aimed at punishing Russia for bad behavior. But they will lead to Europeans suffering. At this point, the EU will begin to punish American companies by prohibiting cooperation with them. Then, undoubtedly, angry Americans will begin to ban deals with some European companies, and a tit-for-tat fight will begin that will lead to general impoverishment,” Forbes predicts.
English version :: Read in English: The EU has switched to threats against the US – Forbes