LONDON (Reuters) – Amid the uproar over former U.S. President Donald Trump's critical comments on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Germany's finance minister said on Monday that the transatlantic partnership between the United States and its European allies was not at the White House. He said that it will continue no matter who takes office.
President Trump, who is running for president in November's election, suggested at a campaign rally on Saturday that he has no intention of defending NATO allies who don't pay enough for their defense and is even willing to encourage Russia to attack.
“Regardless of who is in the White House, we have an overriding interest in continuing to cooperate across the Atlantic on economic, political and even security issues,” said German Finance Minister Christian Lindner. “
Mr Lindner, speaking during a visit to London, said the UK and Germany share similar challenges when it comes to strengthening free trade capacity.
“This conversation is particularly important in the wake of Donald Trump's opening remarks,” Lindner said before speaking with Britain's Jeremy Hunt.
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“As a European member of NATO, we face great challenges,” Lindner said, adding that Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 is putting Europe's order of peace and free trade at risk.
Lindner also touched on the UK's exit from the European Union (EU) in 2020, stating that Brexit has made it more difficult for German companies to do business in the UK and that close dialogue between the two countries is important. said to mean.
“This intensive exchange and dialogue is necessary because, unfortunately, we can no longer meet regularly within the framework of the European Union,” Lindner said.
(Reporting by Maria Martinez; Editing by Matthias Williams and Mark Heinrich)
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