Trump tears EU apart over trade surplus with US

US President Donald Trump met European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker at the White House on Wednesday. Aside from seeking a breakthrough in the US-EU trade spat, Mr Juncker's big broader objective was to try to calm wider transatlantic tensions that boiled over at the rancorous G-7 and Nato summits.

At the heart of this diplomatic discord is Mr Trump's disdain for the EU - which goes significantly beyond that of any president in US history. While he has concerns with Europe's low levels of defence spending vis a vis Washington, it is on the economic front that the Brussels-based club is the deepest source of frustration for him with its big goods surplus with the United States.

On Tuesday, just prior to Mr Juncker's arrival in Washington, Mr Trump tweeted: "Tariffs are the greatest! Either a country which has treated the United States unfairly on Trade negotiates a fair deal, or it gets hit with Tariffs. It's as simple as that - and everybody's talking. Remember, we are the 'piggy bank' that's being robbed."