Top EU official seeks clarity on US policies

EUROPEAN Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker called yesterday for clarity from Donald Trump on issues such as global trade, climate policy and relations with Nato allies after his victory in the US presidential election.

During the election campaign, Trump, a billionaire businessman who has never held public office, strongly criticised free trade, Nato and policies designed to halt global warming, rattling Washington’s allies and trade partners.

“We would like to know how things will proceed with global trade policy,” Juncker said at a business event in Berlin.

“We would like to know what intentions he has regarding the (Nato) alliance. We must know what climate policies he intends to pursue. This must be cleared up in the next few months.”

Juncker said he did not expect the trade deal between the US and the EU, currently being negotiated, to be finalised this year as previously planned.

“The trade deal with the US, I do not view that as something that would happen in the next two years,” he said.

Juncker also said yesterday that the EU’s Stability and Growth Pact, which sets rules on reducing public debt and budget deficits, had to be flexible. “Flexibility does not mean a departure for stability but an intelligent application of our common system of rules.”

Juncker said he understood Italy’s position after the commission forecast on Wednesday that Rome would break EU rules on budget deficit and public debt reduction this year and next.

Rome said the higher structural deficit was due to extraordinary spending on migration and post-earthquake reconstruction.

Juncker had said on Wednesday that the commission should judge a country according to its problems and that, in this situation, the EU’s place was “at Italy’s side and not against it”.