Majority in EU's biggest states believes bloc 'sold out' in US tariff deal

Was It a “Sellout” or the Least-Bad Option?

• Some see the EU as clearly capitulating to Trump’s maximalist bluff: he demands extreme tariffs, then “backs down” in exchange for big concessions.
• Others argue that if the realistic alternatives were worse (e.g., high tariffs or trade chaos), accepting a suboptimal deal is not “selling out” but damage control.
• A minority suggests EU negotiators may be stalling and giving Trump a symbolic win on paper that will be watered down or blocked later, especially by the European Parliament.

Tariffs, Trade, and Who Really Has Leverage

• One side treats US import dominance as bargaining power: threaten punitive tariffs to extract better terms.
• Others push back that broad tariffs hurt both economies and that Trump’s trade approach is optics-heavy and economically incoherent.
• Some compare current US policy to a deliberate slide toward “third world” status via deficits, low rates, and protectionism.

Security, Ukraine, and Strategic Dependence

• Several comments frame the deal as de facto “security-for-economics”: EU accepts economic pain to keep US weapons and support for Ukraine flowing.
• Others doubt US reliability anyway, citing Trump’s NATO remarks and recent US behavior toward allies.
• Sharp disagreement over the claim that “European security depends on winning the Ukraine war”: some see it as existential; others call that exaggerated and highlight demographic and social costs.

EU Structural Weaknesses: Defense, Energy, Tech, and Welfare

• Many blame decades of underinvestment in defense and strategic industries, relying on US security and Russian energy.
• There is extensive debate over whether generous welfare, pensions, and shorter working hours inherently undermine competitiveness.
• EU’s lack of FAANG-scale platforms is tied to regulation, risk aversion, and political choices, not technical inability; opinions diverge on whether mimicking US-style tech capitalism is even desirable.

Political and Systemic Fallout

• Politically, commenters expect the deal to fuel anti-EU and anti-American forces on both far right and far left.
• Some say this episode exposes to Europeans what imperialism and US leverage feel like, and may eventually push the EU toward more autonomy—or deeper fragmentation.