The scepticism among Europeans and many of their leaders toward the incoming new President of the United States of America is undeniable, and it has grown even more tangible this week in the lead-up to tomorrow’s inauguration of Donald J. Trump at the 45th US President.
What a difference from eight years ago when Barack Obama, the first black American President, was inaugurated amid so much hope and enthusiasm. Between those two inaugurations, we in Europe have moved from a situation of hope and excitement to one of trepidation and scepticism.
Just this week President-Elect Trump welcomed the UK’s decision to part ways with the European Union, a move that sent shockwaves across the bloc considering Mr Trump’s predecessor’s stance on the issue.
Brexit, Mr Trump told one major British and one major German newspaper, would “end up being a great thing”, and he predicted the bloc would continue to break apart. He also indicated he was indifferent on whether the EU stays together or not - a sharp contrast from the Obama administration’s line during the Brexit campaign, which had outright encouraged the UK to remain in the EU.
Mr Trump has also threatened the very existence of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), which has served the US and Europe alike in terms of their mutual defence requirements in the wake of World War II. NATO, Mr Trump said last Sunday, had become “obsolete because it wasn't taking care of terror” and he also complained the member organisations were not paying their “fair share”.
When asked by the two publications if the US would guarantee Europe’s defence in the future, as it has since the end of World War II, Mr Trump responded: “Yeah, I feel very strongly toward Europe - very strongly toward Europe, yes.” But that came after he called NATO “obsolete”.
Whatever the aim of those comments were, they were strong enough to make him the talk of the town in European capitals this week.
The EU has also reacted negatively to Mr Trump’s suggestion of moving the US embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a move that very well could increase tensions between the West and the Arab World.
Meanwhile, a protectionist US president and increased European suspicion of a Trump-led America are seen as potentially undermining the prospects of the planned Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, which has been under negotiation for the better part of three years. This comes on top of the fact that many of the traditional ties Europe has had with the US administration are on very thin ice indeed with Mr Trump’s impending assumption of the presidency.
The seemingly very cosy relationship that Trump appears to enjoy with Russia is another major concern in Europe. Russia’s invasion and annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula in 2014, its continued support of separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine, speculation that it has territorial plans in the Baltic States, and its unrelenting support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, have all led to the belief that Russian interests are at odds with Western interests.
Mr Trump’s past remarks about Russia haven’t given much confidence either. He has suggested that he might recognise Russia’s annexation of Crimea, he has praised Mr Putin as a strong leader, and appeared for a time to take Russia’s word that it didn’t interfere in the US election even over the word of his own intelligence agencies.
And the less said about the recent intelligence reports about Mr Trump’s, shall we say, activities in Russia, and the possibility that the next US President may have been left open to blackmail by Russia the better.
But over and above such obvious issues, the stark contrast between Mr Obama’s and Mr Trump’s leadership styles must certainly not be overlooked. One is widely viewed as finesse incarnate while the other is seen as a bull in a China shop.
When he swept into power as the first black president in 2008, Mr Obama had been greeted with open arms by most of the world, Europe included, after the previous eight years of what many in Europe had considered as George W. Bush’s misguided decisions that left severe and lasting repercussions on the rest of the world.
On Friday, that situation will be turned upside down, with Europe and much of the world fearing, albeit with a certain sense of macabre curiosity, for what the next four years holds in store…and already pining for the relative security of the last eight years.
But only time will tell what these next four years will bring with what so many consider as a loose cannon at the helm of the world’s most powerful country.