Maas sees “urgent need for action” in relation to the United States

Updated June 28, 2020, 10:14 a.m.

The relationship between Germany and the United States has deteriorated dramatically since President Donald Trump took office. Secretary of State Maas sees the relationship as “urgent need for action” and at the same time warns against the belief that with a new US president everything would automatically be the same as before.

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Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas sees an “urgent need for action” to improve the severely damaged relationships with the USA. “The transatlantic relationship is extremely important, it remains important and we also work to ensure that it has a future. But as it is now, it no longer meets the requirements that both sides have of it,” he said in an interview the German Press Agency.

With a new US president, not everything will automatically get better

The SPD politician also warned against believing that a possible election from the US president Donald Trump an improvement automatically occurs on November 4th.

“Anyone who thinks that with a President of the Democratic Party everything will be the same again in the transatlantic partnership as it once was, underestimates the structural changes.” Trump’s challenger is Democrat Joe Biden.

Germany is one of Trump’s favorite opponents

Since Trump took office three and a half years ago, relations between Germany and the EU drastically deteriorated to the US. The US President has chosen Germany as a kind of favorite opponent among the allies and does not shy away from punitive measures.

Because Germany’s defense expenditure falls well short of the NATO target of two percent of its gross domestic product, it wants around 10,000 of the nearly 35,000 in Germany stationed U.S. soldiers withdraw. Germany is currently the second largest troop location outside the United States after Japan. The soldiers are mainly stationed in Rhineland-Palatinate, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and Hesse.

But the German trade surplus is also a thorn in Trump’s side and the USA is taking action against the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline from Russia to Germany with sanctions that are to be tightened soon. (jwo / dpa)