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U.S. president Donald Trump pledged to put America first, stop other countries from taking advantage of the United States, and shake up Washingtons business-as-usual mind-set. This resulted in inconsistent and erratic policy in his administrations first two weeks. From putting Tehran on notice, to signing an executive order banning refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim majority countries, to jeopardizing longstanding U.S. alliances, President Trump continues to undermine EU member states security, interests and citizens. The EU must react to mitigate the broader strategic implications of the drastic changes to U.S. policy and check President Trump.

A major component of President Trumps Middle East policy is ideologically driven opposition to Iran. His team views Tehran as a regime led by mad mullahs, driven by an Islamist revolutionary ideology and hell-bent on opposing America. The administration blows Iranian capabilities out of proportion and deeply misunderstands its intentions. In Yemen, Trumps team follows the Saudi linethe Houthis are a puppet of Iran and a threat to the United Statesbut the reality is more nuanced. And when Iran tested a medium-range missile earlier this month, the Trump administration put Tehran on notice and imposed new sanctions on it.

The fear in European capitals is that all this puts the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran at risk. The stronger anti-Iran tone means that de-escalating minor crises becomes more difficult. And there are likely to be challenges to the deal from both sides.

During the campaign, Trump vowed to tear up the deal. But the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was not just a bilateral U.S.-Iran deal; France, the UK, Germany, China and Russia were also involved. For Europe, the deal removes a key concern: Irans nuclear program. It also opens the doors to dialogue with Tehran as a way to overcome other concerns, something Brussels has already begun through its joint EU-Iran High Level political dialogue, which discusses everything from trade deals to human rights. The EUs High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, successfully leveraged the deal to engage not just the moderates but also hard-liners in Tehran on several fronts, including on tough issues like human rights. To be sure, the agreement has flaws, but even skeptics, including U.S. allies in the Gulf and analysts in Washington, have called for Trump to adhere to its terms.

The new administrations more belligerent tone towards Iran also affects the battle against ISIS in Iraq. While Irans role may be worrisome, there is no denying that the United States, the EU, and Iran have overlapping interests in Iraq. Iran is a key stakeholder in the fight against ISIS, and sees combatting ISIS as a foreign- and security-policy priority, to which it has committed substantial resources. The United States and Iran have coordinated on certain efforts, resulting in successful missions. An increasingly belligerent tone makes this type of dialogue and coordination less likely, ultimately jeopardizing the fight against ISIS in Iraq.

President Trump outlined his administrations focus on countering radical Islamic terrorism. As part of this, he signed a controversial executive order, restricting refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen. President Trump claimed this wasnt a Muslim ban. But thats not how its seen. While today the ban has been suspended, the damage is done: if Muslims think this was a Muslim ban, thats all that matters.

Far from helping the West combat ISIS and its ideologyone of Trumps main foreign-policy goalsthe executive order was a gift to terrorists. Its the perfect recruitment tool even after it was suspended. ISIS hasnt been able to sell its narrative of the clash of Islam and the West to the broader Muslim world so far, and such action from the White House allows it to do so. The order also helps radicalize disenfranchised Muslims, and undermines moderate Muslims combatting extremist ideologies.

The ban also further undermines the nuclear deal with Iran. Iran is one of the seven countries targeted. The executive order and the changes to the Visa Waiver Program last year sent conflicting messages to investors and businesses hoping to enter the Iranian market after the nuclear deal. Should Iran be unable to reap the benefits of the deal, itll have less incentive to stick to its end of the bargain.

But perhaps more significant to Brussels and leaders of European countries is President Trumps blatant disregard for managing alliances and relationships with allies. Rhetoric towards traditional allies and friends such as Mexico, Australia and even some of the Gulf Arab states, as well as NATO, highlights the presidents contempt for anyone who criticizes the direction the United States is taking. Instead, President Trump is cozying up to Russias Vladimir Putin, whose actions have threatened European security.

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Trump vs. the European Union: The Coming Storm - The National Interest Online

The food industry accounts for seven out of every 100 of trade between the European Union and the rest of the world. EURACTIVs partner EFE AGRO reports.

While that number may seem small compared to the business generated by trade in the automotive or energy industries, the agri-food sector is of particular importance to the EU economy and, more importantly, the economy of millions of families.

EU exports of agricultural and food products to third countries not including fish and fisheries products valued more than 123.2 billion in 2015, while imports stood at around 114.1bn. This data from Eurostat, the EUs official statistics office, shows that the EU has an agricultural trade surplus of more than 9bn.

The official statistics show how internal EU trade remains a key pillar of the blocs food economy, although the trend is to seek out and consolidate third country markets.

Javier Sierra, the director of Food and Gastronomy at the Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade (ICEX), told Efeagro that the EU continues to be the world leader in food exports, after overtaking the United States in 2013.

For Sierra, this is the result of the EUs continued support for the food sector, through promotion, budget increases and the opening up of new and interesting commercial opportunities.

Not to mention that an important part of this success is down to the rigorous production standards and quality controls EU food producers are bound by, along with the consolidation of trade relations with China, which is already the second most important export destination.

The trade figures

A look at the EUs trade balance for agri-food products (excluding the fishing and drinks industries) reveals some interesting data, according to the International Trade Centre (ITC).

For example, the EU sells much more cereal, flour, starch and milk products than it buys. The total agricultural trade surplus for 2015 was 9bn, with milk, dairy and egg products alone accounting for more than 8.5bn.

Exports from Spains outward-looking food industry are booming. Since the economic crisis began in 2008, Spanish food exporters have seen six years of growth, expanding the sector by 60%. Euractiv Spain reports.

On the opposite side of the balance sheet stands the fruit and vegetable sector, with a trade deficit of some 18.054bn, followed by coffee and tea, with minus 8.064bn. The EU depends heavily on the international market for these subsectors.

It is also worth highlighting the surplus in live animals, meat and offal (8.113bn) and cereals (4.056bn), while in the seeds and oleaginous fruits subsector (including soy) has a deficit of 7.89bn.

Leaving aside the trade balance, the sectors that move the highest volumes of money, either in imports or exports (both within and outside the EU) are meat, milk and dairy products, fruits and vegetables and cereals.

According to Eurostat, the fruit and vegetable sector stands out for the volumes of money its imports move around within the EU: of the 64bn-worth of imports, 67% (42.88bn) is generated by transactions between EU countries.

Meat and edible offal exports are the most striking in this regard. EU countries exported 38bn-worth of products, of which 88% (33.44) stayed within the bloc.

Seventy-six percent of the EUs 42bn export trade in milk and dairy products, eggs and honey also stayed inside the bloc in 2015.

Exports of cereals, a staple of human and animal diets, accounted for 22.6bn, 58% of which (13.1bn) was generated by trade between EU countries.

Trade flows by continent

The study of trade flows between the EU and the other continents also uncovers some striking facts.

The EU exported 1.7bn of milk, dairy products and eggs to America in 2015 and around 4.4bn-worth of cereals to Africa. In both cases, the EU had a large trade surplus.

In Asia, the bloc sold meat and offal worth 5.4bn, with a surplus of more than 5bn. In Oceania, on the other hand, the EUs meat exports of 336m left a trade deficit of 1.135bn.

Total exports in major EU countries

By country, and only in the sub-sectors of meat, milk, dairy, eggs and fruits and vegetables, German exports valued 23.6bn in 2015 (both inside and outside the EU); France exported around 13bn of goods; the UK, some 12.8bn; and Italy 10bn.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment (Mapama), Spains agricultural exports (including fishing) reached a total value of 44.1bn in 2015.

This included meat and offal exports worth 3.91bn, with a positive trade balance. Fruit and vegetable exports totalled 13.6bn, also with a positive balance, while the sale of cereals and oilseeds brought in 966m, a clear trade deficit. In milk and dairy products, honey and eggs, Spanish exports exceeded 1.7bn.

Sierra stressed that it is essential for Spain to promote the unique nature of its varied and high-quality product range in order to consolidate its position in the international agri-food market.

The country hopes to do this by encouraging institutional collaboration and promoting gastro-tourism.

Quality, high food safety standards and competitiveness will ensure that Spain and the rest of the EU continue to lead the global food market.

Excerpt from:
The European Union, an agri-food world power EurActiv.com - EurActiv

Greece Teeters Back to the Edge of the European Union Wall Street Journal (subscription) Greece Teeters Back to the Edge of the European Union. The bailout program has fallen far behind schedule and is on the verge of falling apart. By. Yannis Palaiologos. Feb. 21, 2017 4:07 p.m. ET. Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has been in a ...

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Greece Teeters Back to the Edge of the European Union - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

European Union missions deplore Israeli demolitions in Area C

JERUSALEM, February 22, 2017 (WAFA) - The European Union (EU) missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah Wednesday deplored continuing Israeli demolitions of Palestinian structures in Area C of the West Bank and the stop work orders.

The EU missions said in a statement that these demolitions increase the threat of demolition on Palestinian structures in Khan al-Ahmar, location of a school which serves five local communities, issued by Israel in the occupied West Bank on Sunday.

So far in 2017, 218 Palestinians have been displaced due to demolitions, confiscations and evictions of 135 structures in Area C only. More than half of the displaced persons were children.

In East Jerusalem, 63 people (among whom 31 children) have been displaced due to demolitions, confiscations and evictions of 31 structures in 2017.

During last year, 6,088 Palestinians were affected by 872 demolitions in Area C, among whom 1,663 were children, and humanitarian structures provided by the EU or EU Member States worth approximately EUR 536,000 were destroyed or confiscated.

EU humanitarian activities are carried out in full accordance with International Humanitarian Law, with the sole aim of providing humanitarian support to the most vulnerable population, said the EU missions statement.

The EU missions called on the Israeli authorities to halt demolitions of Palestinian houses and property in accordance with its obligations as an occupying power under international humanitarian law, and to cease the policy of settlement construction and expansion, of designating land for exclusive Israeli use and of denying Palestinian development.

M.K.

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European Union missions deplore Israeli demolitions in Area C - WAFA - Palestine News Agency

By Javier Solana

The world needs the European Union now more than ever. Despite recent crises and the hard blow dealt by the Brexit vote, the EU may well be the worlds best line of defense against todays most serious threats: isolationism, protectionism, nationalism, and extremism in all forms, all of which are once again growing in Europe and beyond.

The key to enabling the EU to meet this potential to save itself and the world from catastrophe is for member states urgently to adopt a European Union first mantra.

Unlike the America first credo embraced by US President Donald Trump, such a mantra would not be an exercise in damaging unilateralism. On the contrary, it would compel member states governments to look beyond narrow national interest, defend openness and multilateralism, and confront head-on the exclusionary political forces that have lately been gaining ground.

It would drive member states to consolidate the EU, thereby enabling it to overcome the challenges it faces and help preserve the international order.

That order is neither an inessential accessory nor a post-war relic. It has supported global prosperity and stability for 70 years. We need it together with the multilateralism on which it is built to confront many of the economic, environmental, and strategic challenges we now face, challenges that cannot be addressed at the national level.

A cornerstone of the existing international order is the recognition that maintaining peace and human welfare requires an understanding of and respect for the needs and interests of others needs and interests that are no less legitimate than our own.

Multilateralism is not a product of unsustainable solidarity, as some like to claim; it is the result of an enlightened interpretation of ones own interests. With a constructive attitude, even a large number of disparate actors can reach agreements in which everyone wins by yielding a little; without it, prospects for sustained peace and widely shared prosperity become far bleaker.

If all countries put their own interests first, paying no heed to others, competition will quickly overwhelm common interests. If nobody is ever willing to yield, we will all lose.

If we depend solely on bilateral deals, the shared spaces and synergies that facilitate agreement on difficult but vital topics from climate change to security will narrow until they disappear.

This is why Trumps embrace of an American first mantra is so worrying. As the worlds leading power, the US sets the tone of cooperation and often provides the incentives for other countries to participate.

If the US maintains a unilateral and isolationist stance, other countries are almost certain to follow suit, endangering everyone including the US.

Recently, the Trump administration has begun to moderate some of its foreign-policy positions. In particular, Trump has finally agreed to honor the One China policy.

He also seems to have rectified his approach to Japan, after having raised doubts about his willingness to follow through on Americas security commitments.

These developments imply that the administration is beginning to recognize the need for a more constructive approach.

That recognition may arise partly out of an understanding of history. Experience has shown that the most effective way to prevent conflicts is through inclusion and cooperation. Exclusionary rhetoric plays into the hands of those who reduce identity to nativist definitions.

When such figures nationalists and populists have been left to guide policy in the past, the result has been large-scale conflict.

At a time when global power dynamics are in flux, as is true today, the risk of such an outcome is even greater. Today, an effort is being made to incorporate emerging powers particularly China more deeply into the existing structures of global governance.

Casting doubt on these structures, which have sustained stability over the last seven decades, would merely fuel more nationalism and competition, opening the way for volatility and conflict.

If the US cannot be counted on to support global stability, the EUs model and experience will become even more important. The EU is the embodiment of inclusion, cooperation, and democratic values.

Despite its flaws, the EU has proved time and again how differences can be resolved peacefully and constructively. Its member states are uniquely committed to multilateralism; indeed, we practice it daily.

The results speak for themselves. No one can doubt that the EU has been a guarantor of peace, democracy, modernity, and progress for all of its members.

Its community model which requires cooperation, negotiation, and compromise to reach any consequential decision amounts to a check on extremism, because no member country can push radical policies forward without other members pushing back.

This is not to say that EU countries face no risk of falling victim to simplistic populist rhetoric. On the contrary, the point is to highlight why EU member states must dedicate themselves to the continued construction of a stronger and deeper union.

For the sake of Europe and the world, it is time to put the EU first.

No one knows better than Europe the consequences of extremism and nationalism or how to overcome them. With an enlightened and supranational spirit, the EU has achieved a sustained peace that would have seemed impossible a century ago. It must not lose sight of that achievement. Instead, it must continue to advance the union, and show the world what multilateralism can do.

Writerwas EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Secretary-General of NATO, and Foreign Minister of Spain. He is currently President of the ESADE Center for Global Economy and Geopolitics and Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution.

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The European Union First - New Vision - New Vision