China, Germany, and EU partners for cooperation, multilateralism

In a speech delivered in Brussels on Wednesday, outgoing European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmstrom mocked the US president on trade without even mentioning his name. In the speech, titled Truths about Trade, Malmstrom, a veteran at European Union institutions, sighed that "we live in the age of government by Twitter", a reference to the US president, who less than a day ago attacked the EU on Twitter for treating the United States very "unfairly" on trade.

She then explained the misconceptions about tariffs, such as the levying of tariffs target foreign businesses when, in fact, they target the consumers; and making a product at home saves money, strengthens the economy and creates jobs, which is a tempting argument but untrue. She also pointed to the big mistake people make in confusing a trade balance with a bank balance by interpreting exports as profits and imports as losses.

This is what the US leader has said repeatedly in his speeches and tweets.