BERLIN — Germany’s new foreign minister said Europe’s response to President Trump’s ‘‘America First’’ strategy should be ‘‘Europe United.’’
In his first major policy speech, Heiko Maas said Wednesday that the European Union should strive for a ‘‘balanced partnership’’ with the United States.
Maas said that means working with Washington where possible, filling voids in areas where the United States is withdrawing, and pushing back where it is seen as crossing red lines.
Speaking in Berlin, Maas said the EU should also increasingly move toward majority and away from unanimous decision-making, which encourages foreign powers to try to split the bloc.
Maas also called for the EU to strengthen its outreach to former Soviet republics, and said Germany and France can be the driving force in reforming Europe.
associated press