President Trump of taking U.S. in “completely the wrong direction”, says Germany’s Economy Minister.
Merkel is one to lecture on taking countries in the wrong direction!
President Donald Trump’s latest executive orders on foreign trade have irked Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government, prompting tough talk from Berlin.
On Friday, President Trump signed two orders seeking to identify trade abuse and other malpractices carried out by foreign governments in order to lower the U.S. trade deficit. Merkel’s second-in-command, German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel, described Trump’s moves as unlawful, claiming that he wants to “favour American companies, even if it contradicts international law.”
Germany’s Economy Minister Brigitte Zypries said that President Trump was taking the U.S. in “completely the wrong direction” and “moving away from free trade” by signing those executive orders. Minister Zypries had previously threatened to take the U.S. to court if the Trump administration were to impose import duties on German products.
In the next 90 days, the Trump administration hopes to produce a country-by-country, product-by-product report to identify foreign governments that subsidize their exports — making their products below-market price. The current U.S. trade deficit stands at around $500 billion, with Germany accounting for some $65 billion of that deficit, nearly doubling its share during President Obama’s tenure.
Deutsche Welle reported the Merkel government’s reaction:
Following US President Donald Trump’s executive orders signed on Friday to review causes of US trade deficits, Germany’s Economy Minister Brigitte Zypries said US President Donald Trump is signaling policy decisions that would send the country in “completely the wrong direction.” […]
The orders that Trump signed will look into why it has trade deficits with some of its most important partners, including China, Canada and Germany.
Trump repeated on Friday claims that he made throughout his campaign about seeking to bring back industrial jobs to the US. Before signing the orders, he said it was time to “correct” bad agreements with other countries and claimed that “thousands of factories have been stolen from our country.” […]
The US obviously wants to move away from free trade and trade agreements,” Zypries said in an interview with the German weekly “Welt am Sonntag,” adding, “We must seek constructive dialogue and explain that the reasons for the US trade deficit are not just abroad.” […]
Germany’s Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has said he shares Zypries’ concerns. Gabriel told German newspaper “Rheinische Post” that Trump’s executive orders signaled the US government “is ready to favor American companies, even if it contradicts international law.” [DW News, March 3, 2017]