Kamala Harris famously claimed during the ABC debate on September 10 that “world leaders are laughing at Donald Trump.” However, European officials dismissed the vice president's remark at the United Nations High-Level Week, stressing that they are “friends of America.”
European ministers dismiss Harris' claim about world leaders ‘laughing’ at Trump
When asked about the Democratic nominee's claim about the former president, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said that the US and Italy are “two sides of the same coin.” “If Trump will be the new president of America, we will work with him as we worked with him when he was president of America,” Tajani added, per Fox News.
Earlier this month, Harris and Trump battled it out during the high-stakes presidential debate. Both candidates made controversial remarks about each other, with the 59-year-old telling the GOP nominee, “I have talked with military leaders, some of whom worked with you, and they say you're a disgrace.”
Tajani went on to say, “For us, the transatlantic relations are the key strategy of our foreign policy, Europe and America.” He explained that Italy has “worked well” with Joe Biden and past American presidents, including George Bush, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama.
Meanwhile, Lithuania and the Czech Republic's foreign ministers refrained from making any comment about the US election, saying they “leave it to the American citizens to decide.” However, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky praised Trump's defence spending.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Lithuania and the Czech Republic's foreign ministers refrained from making any comment about the US election, saying they “leave it to the American citizens to decide.” However, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky praised Trump's defence spending.
{{/usCountry}}“The point is that Donald Trump had, at his time, one strong message for Europe, and that message was quite resonating and is resonating more now because he was saying spend more on your defense,” Lipavsky said, per the outlet.
He went on to say that his “government is spending more on our defense,” adding, “We want to reach those 2% of GDP, will be reaching them this year, and we will continue next year. So, (if) Donald Trump would be a president with this message, ‘Please spend 2%,’ we would be OK.”