Donald Trump’s conflict with the European Union has intensified after the US president announced an agreement with Vladimir Putin to buy Russian diesel, prompting warnings that the future of Nato is being put under strain.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the deal as “a gift” to the Kremlin, while European leaders criticised the decision as a potential source of fresh income for Russia’s war effort.
Trump responded by accusing the EU of hypocrisy, claiming the bloc had paid Russia 250 billion dollars for energy. “I made the right choice for the American People – ALWAYS, AMERICA FIRST!” he wrote on Truth Social.
The dispute is the latest in a series of public clashes between the US president and European governments over Ukraine, migration, defence spending, trade and America’s role in the transatlantic alliance.
Trump’s conflict with the European Union
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the diesel agreement was unacceptable for Germany and Europe. “The outcome of this decision is questionable, the risks are clear,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said.
Ms Meloni said the arrangement would give “legitimacy to Moscow while its bombs continue to fall on Ukrainian cities”, provide fresh revenue for Putin’s war chest and weaken the pressure created by sanctions.
The rupture follows a series of attacks by Trump on European governments. His administration has accused Europe of facing “civilisational erasure” because of uncontrolled immigration, and a US counterterrorism strategy described the continent as an incubator for extremism.
The strategy said hostile groups exploited open borders and warned that “the more these alien cultures grow, and the longer current European policies persist, the more terrorism is guaranteed”. It also identified violent left-wing extremists, including anarchists and antifascists, as a particular concern.
Trump has separately claimed that unrest in France is the result of mass migration and “Islam wanting to take over”. He wrote: “What’s happening in France is nothing less than out of control mass migration. This isn’t about schools, this is about Islam wanting to take over a once great Country!”
His relationship with French President Emmanuel Macron has been particularly strained. Trump has criticised France’s assistance during the conflict with Iran and made a public joke about an incident involving Mr Macron and his wife, Brigitte.
Mr Macron said the comments about his marriage were “neither elegant nor up to standard”. Yael Braun-Pivet, president of France’s lower house of parliament, also condemned the remarks, while Manuel Bompard of the hard-Left France Unbowed party said they were “absolutely unacceptable”.
Spain has also faced criticism from Washington. Trump called the country a “terrible partner” in Nato after its government refused to allow the US to use its airspace or bases for the Iran war and declined to commit to the alliance’s new defence spending target.
Spain is the only one of Nato’s 32 members to have refused to spend five per cent of its gross domestic product on defence by 2035, according to the material. Trump has threatened to cut off trade with the country, although trade has continued normally.
He has also blamed Spain’s socialist government for a migration crisis in Ceuta, where at least 72,000 people crossed from Morocco over two days. At least 100 people died, while the majority of those who arrived returned to Morocco within hours.
The president has repeatedly questioned the value of Nato, writing in March: “Without the U.S.A., NATO IS A PAPER TIGER!” He has accused allies of failing to support America and said it was “ridiculous” for Washington to maintain its current level of backing for an alliance he described as one-sided.
The Pentagon is examining a possible reduction of American forces in Europe, including aircraft, ships, weapons and between 25,000 and 40,000 troops. Germany, Italy and Spain are expected to be among the countries affected, according to officials cited in the source material.
Another major dispute has centred on Greenland, the semi-autonomous Danish territory. Trump’s repeated threats to take control of the strategically located island led to a rift with European allies and prompted the EU to consider retaliatory tariffs on US goods.
Although Trump later ruled out taking Greenland by force and a security agreement was signed involving the US, Denmark and Greenland, he has continued to make public statements about the territory.
The EU-US trade relationship has also been damaged by Trump’s tariff threats. The bloc eventually agreed to a 15 per cent tariff on most exports to the US, a deal some European leaders regarded as a capitulation.
European governments are now rallying behind Zelensky as the dispute over Russian diesel deepens. The latest confrontation has left open the question of whether Trump will restore closer relations with his European allies or widen the division across Nato.
