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La canciller alemana Angela Merkel y el presidente Trump durante la cumbre del G7 en 2017. Photo: Reuters/ Jonathan Ernst/File Photo.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Trump during the G7 summit in 2017. Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo.

How the US elections will affect Europe

The European partners are living with real tension this Nov. 3 and are asking themselves one question: Will relations with the U.S. improve if Biden wins? 

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President Trump is not alone in believing that this presidential election is the most important in U.S. history. 

Europe remains in a state of nervous tension awaiting results that could be crucial for the Union, especially since economic engines such as France and Germany are well aware of the impact that a re-election of Trump could have on the Atlantic alliance.

While for David A. Andelman, a CNN contributor and executive director of "The Red Lines Project," both France and Germany recognize some of the elements that for decades have kept the transatlantic partnership in relative balance "may be all but lost, regardless of who wins in the United States."

Of course, the primary focus of all European countries, above and beyond the campaign, has been to address the coronavirus pandemic, and the all-powerful American Giant has served as little help and example in containing it. 

This is how Europe debates itself, between the belief in an inevitable disconnection from the United States and the conviction, especially among the French, that Biden's victory may not mean a return to the "old days," as commentator Piotr Smolar assured in Le Monde. 

In fact, presidents like Macron, who feels he is the successor to Angela Merkel's scepter in the Union, are already working on the idea of a European army that does not depend on the military power of the United States.

No one seems to believe entirely the promises of both candidates to withdraw the country from participation in Middle East wars forever.

More than anything, because wars like the one in Syria have spilled over into the whole world, not just the U.S. 

However, Biden is perceived as someone more inclined to negotiate with the Europeans, and not nearly as isolationist as Trump. So much of the hope is that with the Democrat winning, issues like the country's return to the Paris Climate Agreement and Iran's nuclear deal, as well as the WHO, will be unfrozen.

In short, that there will be a little more peace, less harassment and intoxication on the networks, and an end to warmongering language that is more like reality TV than politics.

The economy in the center

"The policies of the Trump administration have affected the lives of European citizens in different dimensions, from students now finding a less welcoming environment and more restrictive visa policies in the United States, to higher costs as a result of fees," Cornell University Government Professor Gustavo Flores-Macias told Euronews.

The U.S. trade wars have affected many European workers, especially because of tariff pressure imposed by the government in industries like agriculture or steel, which has caused millions of euros in losses. 

Some people directly blame Trump for the pressure on foreign companies, and some blame the country as a whole; but above all, the lack of clarity of the Democratic candidate's position on the trade war with Europe raises concern. 

Will Biden relax if he wins?

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