EU slams US over war-accumulated wealth: Politico

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Politico
25 Nov 2022 19:57
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EU officials go berserk when Biden was tackled over the issue of US gas prices being sold for a higher price on EU markets to which he "simply seemed unaware of the issue."

EU slams US over war-accumulated wealth: Politico

Politico published a striking report on Thursday that details unprecedented accusations by senior EU officials against the US for "fracturing" the West and making "EU countries suffer" at the expense of Biden's campaign to support Ukraine.

According to the report, officials are accusing the US of amassing enormous wealth out of the war industry as the US is seen "selling more gas at higher prices" and "selling more weapons."

The statements come against the backdrop of a recent bill Congress passed in August this year which many believe will entice crucial enterprises to relocate to the US and wreck crucial industries in the EU economies: the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

"America needs to realize that public opinion is shifting in many EU countries," one EU official was quoted as saying.

Even EU's chief Josep Borrell called on Washington to address the bloc's concerns. “The Americans are our friends – they make decisions that matter economically to us,” he told Politico.

The most heated debate revolves around Biden's green subsidies, which are likely to erode some of the EU's vital industries.

Despite the EU's outcries to address these concerns, Washington has remained silent on the matter.

"The Inflation Reduction Act is very worrying," said Dutch Trade Minister Liesje Schreinemacher. "The potential impact on the European economy is very big."

We should avoid a trade war by any means possible.
It is important to see what the task force will come up with. For now, we have to take it step by step.⁰
- @LSchreinemacher, doorstep #FAC Trade pic.twitter.com/eIXNHSqZ1V
— Netherlands at the EU (@NLatEU) November 25, 2022

EU officials are likewise outraged over the fact that the US was selling gas to the EU at a price 3-4 times higher than on its domestic market.

Some of the bloc's major economies, including Germany, have already issued warnings that de-industrialization is likely to take place in the near future due to partial disruptions in supply chains, staff shortages, and soaring energy prices.

EU officials further went berserk when Biden was tackled over US gas prices to which he "simply seemed unaware of the issue," according to a senior official quoted by Politico.

It was mutually agreed by senior EU officials that American ignorance was a serious issue to deal with.

But the report further states that Russian President Vladimir Putin would have intentionally wanted the trans-Atlantic alliance to disintegrate, which is wrong considering that the war was initially triggered by NATO's eastward expansion.

Tonino Picula, the coordinator for the EU Parliament's transatlantic relationship with the US, said the US is "following a domestic agenda, which is regrettably protectionist and discriminates against US allies."

Americans responded by saying that the price setting for European buyers is relative to private market decisions and is in no way the outcome of the US government policy.

For instance, profits accumulated from the imports and exports of gases will not go to LNG suppliers, but rather to companies reselling the gas within the EU - such as Totalenergies and other suppliers.

"US companies have been transparent and reliable suppliers of natural gas to Europe," an American official said.

"It wasn't until Washington announced a $369 billion industrial subsidy scheme to support green industries under the Inflation Reduction Act that Brussels went into full-blown panic mode," the report states.

"The Inflation Reduction Act has changed everything," one EU diplomat said. "Is Washington still our ally or not?"

On November 13, The Telegraph published an op-ed titled "Europe has picked a side in the new Cold War – China," suggesting that the EU betrayed the US by joining the "bad side" of geopolitical rivalry, namely China.

The piece is basically blaming the EU for turning its back on the principles of freedom and democracy by launching a series of projects and initiatives with Chinese investors.

Even though the article states that the EU relies on the US for security, it is clear that the bloc is starting to wake up from the spell of the "China threat", especially since the dragging of the EU into the whole Ukraine situation has resulted in the bloc's bankruptcy financially, militarily, and politically.

In short, no one is to blame but the US itself over its deteriorating relations with the EU, and as it scrambles to find alternatives to overpriced gas the US shamefully wants to sell, it is undergoing an important transformation that is set to mark the start of a new phase in international relations.