Europe made major trade concessions to Trump. How did that happen?

Press quote (The New York Times)
29 July 2025

It might nevertheless be one of the better results Europe could have obtained, said Aslak Berg, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform in London.

“A lot of the initial reaction is that this a political defeat, this is a humiliation for the European Union,” Mr Berg said. He added: “Is it what the EU wanted? No. Is it ideal? No. But if this agreement sticks — big if — it will provide a certain degree of predictability.”