The tributes of the vassals

By Manlio Dinucci (Grandangolo Pangea on Byoblu TV, Italy)

The EU has agreed to set aside the counter-duties it had imposed on US imports, amounting to more than 90 billion euros. In addition, the EU has pledged to invest €600 billion in the US and purchase €750 billion worth of LNG and oil from the US. US energy companies, particularly those producing liquefied natural gas, have seen significant gains on the stock exchange. The EU's dependence on US gas and oil is set to increase further with the new EU sanctions package against Russia, which aims to eliminate all gas and oil imports from Russia by 2027. This means that the EU will no longer import energy from Russia at prices far below US prices.

Trump justifies US tariffs by arguing that there is a significant imbalance in goods trade between the US and the European Union. Last year, the US imported goods worth nearly $606 billion from Europe, while selling goods worth around $370 billion to European buyers. 

However, the US has a significant surplus in services such as financial advice, tourism and education. Taking into account the total value of $1.8 trillion in goods and services traded between the US and the EU, the US trade deficit is less than $100 billion — practically insignificant. Therefore, Trump's justification for the US duties is unfounded.

In addition, the European Union is committed to purchasing an increasing amount of armaments from the US. This is because EU countries are part of NATO, which is under US command and requires its members to allocate 5% of their GDP to military spending. This further strengthens the US military–industrial complex. For example, Northrop Grumman, one of the largest US war industries, plans to produce 25,000 solid-propellant rocket engines per year by 2029, up from 13,000 today, for use in missile production.

While Trump gives Russia less than two weeks to end the war in Ukraine, erasing the fact that the US and NATO provoked it, Germany reintroduces compulsory conscription for all 18-year-olds as tensions with Russia rise. 

Meanwhile, Macron is increasing French military spending, stating that 'freedom has never been so threatened', and has signed a nuclear pact with Britain 'to repel the threat to Europe'. 

In response, Russia cancels the naval parade scheduled to take place in St Petersburg on Navy Day “for security reasons”. Meanwhile, the major Russian naval exercise 'July Storm', involving the Northern, Pacific, Baltic and Caspian fleets, begins. The exercise involves more than 15,000 naval personnel, over 150 combat ships (including a frigate and a nuclear attack submarine), 120 aircraft, 950 types of military equipment, and 10 coastal defence missile systems.