Tim Newark

the bill. It is happy to see the economic turmoil of Greece and Italy keep the euro low so it can keep selling cars to America.

If any country should leave the euro it is Germany, not the poorer countries. Then its currency would rise to a more realistic level reflecting its massive trade surplus. But by staying in the euro it is manipulating the currency to make it more competitive with the rest of the world. All at the expense of record youth unemployment in the Mediterranean countries.

Trump says he is all in favour of free trade but only after he sees fair trade.

Of course, his main target in any looming trade war is China. It was Chinese overcapacity of steel and aluminium that forced other countries, including the EU and Canada, to cut their metal prices and dump it on the US.

When Trump first imposed his tariffs on China three months ago his tough talk had the immediate result that Chinese delegates came to America offering greater access to the Chinese market and cutting their own tariffs on US goods. Offering a carrot as well as a stick he reciprocated by reversing a trade ban on their mobile phone company ZTE.

Now China, witnessing the animosity of America’s socalled

ALL this should be offered at the G7 meeting later this week in Canada but will the anti-Trump prejudices of the EU and other Western leaders colour their statements? Will they ramp up the rhetoric of trade war, not calm it by addressing Trump’s legitimate desire to rebalance world trade?

Many Brits have misinterpreted Trump’s claim that he is raising these tariffs for national security reasons. This is not because he doesn’t trust our military alliance but because it was the only way he could get the necessary legislation past his own Congress.

But there definitely is a national security concern for us all when it comes to trading with China as many high-tech companies have said that the price for them being allowed to enter the Chinese market is to hand over their technological secrets. That way China has blackmailed its way into stealing some of our cutting-edge inventions. That cannot be allowed to go on and is one of the reasons why Trump is going head to head with them.

Rather than blaming Trump, the EU should be backing him in this vital battle with China.

If it means that the EU and mainly Germany recognises its own responsibility in skewing trade with the US then they should do it because the West must stand together in tackling China’s abuses of global trade.

Of course, when the UK is free of the EU we will be able to make up our own mind on the wisdom of Trump’s trade policy and act accordingly.

In the meantime, fingers crossed that common sense prevails at the G7 meeting later this week and concessions are made on both sides – but I wouldn’t hold my breath where the global liberal elite are concerned…

‘If anyone should leave the euro it’s Germany’