Why Europe should take the lead on trade

“THIS IS DEEPLY offensive,” declares Cecilia Malmstrom, gesticulating around her orchid-lined office in the European Commission’s Berlaymont headquarters. “We have colleagues here whose parents fought together [with the Americans] on the Normandy coast and we are a threat to national security?” The EU’s trade commissioner is referring to Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs on European steel and aluminium, which he preposterously claims is necessary for national-security reasons. The EU has retaliated with its own tariffs on bourbon, Harley Davidson motorbikes and other iconic American goods.