It's hard to imagine that just two years ago, life was without Donald Trump. In Brussels — the capital of the European Union and NATO — the US president's role is pivotal. And even from his office on the other side of the Atlantic, Trump has certainly burned himself into the collective memory of Europe.
Trump's unforgettable appearances at NATO summits, where various ranting tirades caused considerable commotion and plenty of ruffled feathers. The threats of tariffs on European cars and the announcement of the US withdrawal from that the INF treaty on nuclear disarmament also sent Brussels into a spin.
So, from a European point of view, everything about the US president is abominable? Most people would see it that way, but it's not entirely true. In many ways, Trump has actually done the EU good. The benefits of Trump for Europe are clearly unintentional but also rather obvious. "The Donald" has united the EU.
Trump's stances have ensured European solidarity and progress in many areas. Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO), the EU's foreign and security policy arm, for example, would not exist as it does now without Trump.
Ever since Trump's election, the popularity of the bloc has been on the rise — at least on the continent's mainland. In Brussels, some may even say — behind closed doors — that Trump is the best thing that could happen to the EU.
President Donald Trump appeared standoffish in front of the cameras when he welcomed Chancellor Angela Merkel to the White House last March. The US president refused to extend a hand to the chancellor in front of media at the Oval Office, a stiff image that defined their first encounter.
Yet Trump does of course also pose a threat to Europe. Not just because of the obvious clashes: Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement on climate change and from the Iran nuclear deal, and global destabilization of trade relations.
Instead, it is because even within the borders of the EU, Trump is garnering support among the population and politicians. They don't necessarily admire the president for his tantrums, insolence, and insults. Rather, they appreciate his disregard for political correctness and how he addresses truths that are often swept under the rug. A few examples?
— The accusation that Europe did not pay the amount committed to defense under NATO: Patently correct
— The accusation that the US is in a disadvantageous position with the EU and China regarding tariffs: In many respects, correct
— The declaration that some multilateral institutions, such as the World Trade Organization are outmoded and inefficient: In recent years, also correct.
The way Trump conducts himself is well below the belt — there is no denying that. But that's not enough to nullify his Twitter tirades, because many people don't care about manners, especially in this day and age.
Even before taking office, US President Donald Trump's relationship with NATO has been a tumultuous one, to say the least. He has disparaged the trans-Atlantic alliance, once describing it as "obsolete" and a relic of the Cold War. Here are Trump's most memorable quotes about the military alliance, even if they are at times false.
But the EU should do its best to take the wind out of his sails. In some cases, it is already doing so, for example in increasing defense spending and in coordinating foreign and security policy.
Europe is also beginning to take seriously the concerns of the many people drifting towards populists like Trump. These include concerns about digitization and one's own identity in a globalized and increasingly complex world — one whose reality is increasingly shaped by digital giants in China or the US.
The success of Italy's Matteo Salvini, serving as both deputy prime minister and interior minister, and of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban are cold, hard proof that the EU has not yet been able to dispel these concerns.
So what is there to take away from two years of Trump? The EU is trying to use the momentum that the US president has brought to many issues of world and trade policy to its advantage. Trump has finally given the bloc the impetus to construct an EU that is not just economically important; European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called it "world political capability."
Juncker's experience and cleverness make him one of the few European politicians who seems to have found a successful strategy on how to deal with Trump. In trade policy, he offers simple and clear compromises, the game of simple give and take that the "businessman" Trump can apparently make sense of.
To reduce the impact of would-be Trumpian populists, to make use of the room for maneuver in world politics, to find the most effective strategies to deal with the US president As far as these matters are concerned, the past two years have been a steep learning curve for the EU.
However, neither Europe nor the rest of the liberal world has found effective means to prevent the havoc being wreaked by Trump to the transatlantic relationship. Trump is ensuring — unintentionally – that the EU finally seeks self-reliance.
But even from a European perspective, given Trump's wave of destruction, it would have been better if Europe could have come of age without Trump in the picture.
