The head of foreign policy of the European Union says that tariffs among Western countries only serve the interests of China and is asking for a greater defense expense to keep Russia under control.
“If the United States is having a commercial war with Canada, Mexico or the European Union, then who is benefiting from this is China,” Kaja Kallas said in an interview on Thursday with The Canadian Press.
Kallas, the former Prime Minister of Estonia, is supervising the EU approach to a new alarming geopolitical climate, one in which the United States suggests expanding its commitment to defend NATO allies and follow a commercial war against Europe and Canada.
“We are trying to maintain a fresh head,” Kallas said.
“We are also ready to really defend our interests, but it would be our desire that we did not have to deal with this, because we have many other problems.”
These problems include the first large -scale land war in Europe in decades, budgetary abdominals that have governments throughout the continent that fight to balance their books and an increase in severe climatic events caused by climate change.
These threats have led Europe to seek help in Canada in the shoring of the supply chains of everything, from food to energy, areas covered under a free trade agreement that has been in force since 2017.
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“We definitely need to deepen our cooperation in these areas, especially in terms of economic security,” Kallas said.
Europe is also looking for cooperation in Military Affairs in Canada.
Earlier this month, the outgoing prime minister, Justin Trudeau, traveled to London for a European Security Conference on the maintenance of the support of the allies to the defense of Ukraine.
Europeans are anxiously observing reports on a possible fire between Russia and Ukraine, and some countries have committed to send troops and airplanes to maintain peace and avoid more Russian incursions.
Canada and the EU have been talking for almost a year about a possible security and defense association.
The pact could be similar to those that Brussels has signed with Japan and Korea that cover joint naval exercises, or their agreements with countries that are not from the EU on underwater infrastructure.
Kallas said that the association with Canada would imply “important cooperation when it comes to the defense industry” and establish standards in “investments in defense, so that we work together and we are ready to help each other.”
He added that Europeans have no interest in creating “parallel structures” to replicate the NATO military alliance.
“The strongest Canada is, and the strongest European allies in NATO are, the strongest NATO is,” Kallas said.
The country of origin of Kallas, once part of the Soviet Union, has had a tumultuous relationship with Russia for decades.
She said that Canadians must understand that Russia is their neighbor next door in the Arctic, a region that is growing in geopolitical importance due to their commercial routes and critical raw materials.
“Russia is an existential threat, not only for European security but actually global security,” he said.
“When we allow Russia to get yours with the attacks and attacks they are doing in Ukraine, then everything is in danger.”
Kallas said Europe and his companions need to spend more on defense. Many NATO countries, included in Canada, are below the NATO defense spending target of 2 percent of GDP.
Some NATO allies have discussed higher defense spending objectives of 2.5 or three percent of GDP. Kallas said that Russia's defense expense amounts to nine percent of its GDP.
“If we are not investing in our defense enough, then they will want to use this military force again,” he said.
“The only thing that deters them is strength, be it strong enough to not try us.”
& Copy 2025 the Canadian press