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This has been quite a year for those political and business leaders who've been trying to keep up with the blizzard of announcements that have come from Donald Trump's White House. In Europe, the transatlantic relationship has been upended by tariffs, public criticism, and tensions over Greenland and Russia's war in Ukraine. Joining us now to discuss all of that is the US Ambassador to Belgium, Bill White is in our Brussels studio. Great to see you, Arian, Thank you very much for
joining us here. I wonder, given that backdrop, do you have a much more difficult job than your predecessors?
Interesting question? No, actually, I will tell you. Yesterday I went to one of the largest potato processing plants called Agristo. They are making a billion dollar investment in America. Was talking with Google and Amazon. They are making a six billion dollar investment here in Belgium. Belgium US trade is off the chart. I have a list of thirty billion dollars worth of deals that we're working to close from Belgium to the United States. Princess Astrod You know America
doesn't have a princess. You guys over here have kings and queens and princesses. It's not something we're accustomed to in the United States. And the King's sister went to America with about one hundred and fifty Belgian business people, and those deals are the deals we're focused on closing. What I try to do is to stay away from
the noise, as I call it. There are obviously some things we can talk about, a US policy being at the top of the list here as some of the things that you mentioned, but those are not affecting the deals that we are working on. We are working on a fifty billion dollar LNG deal here with Belgium which would provide which would provide relief for the trade deal. You know, it's required by the trade deal for Europe to buy seven hundred and fifty billion dollars of US energy.
This would be fifty billion right off the top. So some of those things that you're talking about, of course are very topical and pulse and blinking. But on the trade front, people want to do business, and I'm so glad that those other things are not causing those entities to stop looking at doing deals with the United States.
But I think perhaps referring to them as noise might feel like an understatement to some of the people who are following issues like Greenland so closely. You're someone who's known the president for many, many years. I wonder, as a diplomat and as somebody who knows Donald Trump, what should we be expecting him to do next when it comes to Greenlands.
Well, two things. President Trump has been speaking about Greenland for a long long time, and I don't think the Danes were listening. I'll be honest with you, but I will state that I was very happy to hear that the meetings yesterday at the White House between the Danish Prime Minister and our great Vice President and my favorite Secretary of State, Marco Rubio. These are two wonderful human
beings that I've known very well. As you said, I've known presis than In Trump for over thirty five years. The strategic military importance of Greenland cannot be underestimated. It is not good for you and me sitting here for Chinese, Russian nuclear submarines and anything else that could threaten the security of the United States, NATO, and Europe to be traveling free and clear through that area whenever they please.
And so for those reasons, and some reasons we really can't explain on the radio on the TV here at Bloomberg that are so sensitive and must be addressed. So I am hoping and I believe there will be a productive framework between President Trump the Prime Minister of Denmark, and this will lead to a more secure Greenland and that is secure for NATO, Europe and the US.
Nay, So, Denmark and Greenland have denied that that threat is there in the way that the United States describes there is a concern in Europe about military intervention in Greenland? How likely do you think that might be? And therefore
the real concern about the end of NATO. And I was listening to your remarks earlier on Bloomberg Television that you were saying that you know you're in the capital of you know, the place where NATO has its headquarters, that that alliance seventy eighty years old, could be over.
Yeah. Well, first of all, with all due respect, I think that whoever is making those statements, I know you're not making those statements, is ridiculous. President Trump, let me finish, please. Yeah, President Trump is the greatest supporter that NATO has ever known, and we'll ever know, he is the only person who helped to save NATO. He has raised over half a trillion dollars by pushing and indeed the beginning, it was very much of a pushback from these countries to say, well, no,
just want America to keep paying for our defense. That's not a fair burden sharing. America was doing this for so long, and I am so proud of President Trump for securing the coalition of the willing for burden sharing. They are all now agreed to pay five percent. This is a massive, great economic program as well, because the expenditure of those funds will create jobs here in Europe.
Europe's GDP compared to the United States ten years ago, is almost half the GDP of Germany, the most industrialized nation in all of Europe. Per capita is less than the teeny tiny state of West Virginia, just a.
Daughter strength has elements to those figures. Okay, figures, Okay, but look, I'm curious.
But the point is. The point is there is no greater person in the world who's supporting that than Donald Trump. On top of which he cares so much about Europe. He does care about Europe, and that's why the policy initiatives are are hoping and driving Europe to be a better, less regulated, more business focused.
Is the continent to the ends, justify the means really. I mean, yes, European countries are committing more to spending on defense, but there's been huge damage to the Transatlantic relationship and people are viewing America and a different like now it's not worth us.
I think people should be viewing the relationship as a strong one, as one that challenges each other. I think the way we were doing things for a way too long was not a good situation for Europe, and you can see what has happened to Europe with overregulation. I heard the word I learned new words by the way when I come to Belgium. The word for a protest is a manifestation that's acute. The word for deregulation is simplification.
It makes sense to me these rules have to be simplified for US and European businesses to just go back to doing business instead of fighting about policy and personalities. So I am very proud of what President Trump is trying to achieve here in Europe, which is to make Europe better than it is, make Europe stronger than it is make Europe more strategic, and it's thinking about policy so that it can encourage business. Europe has been spending
way out of control on social programs. Illegal migration issues are affecting Europe. These are things that we are addressing in the United States. By the election of Donald Trump by over eight million votes, I think a lot of people I talked to here in Belgium would like a change as well. The business people here would like a change as well.
I suppose the question is about whether or not that is up to voters in Europe in terms of you know, very elected leaders. Also, Belgium is a big customer in terms of US defense material, notably F thirty five jets. Are you concerned or do you have any views about this business potentially going to European defense companies in the future. Obviously the EU guidelines are focused on prioritizing European companies.
Yeah, you're talking about the aid money that was provided by the EU for Ukraine loan program. There is a provision in there. I don't know if if if you're aware of this that a certain percentage would be a lot of two US companies. So the thinking there one of the things I heard was the thinking there came from Ukraine and the leadership at the EU. So again there's there's a lot I say noise, meaning don't always believe what you hear and read. Do your research, find
out what's really going on. That's what I tried to do. I try to focus on the one or two things that we can get along, so you're.
Not you're not worried about that business going to European companies.
No. We just met with the Defense minister here the other day. They are purchasing eleven new F thirty fives. We have major patriot missile batteries and am rams that go along with that sale. We're talking over eight billion dollars of US military sales to Belgium, and of course Belgium and other countries have the right to buy munitions
and machinery from other countries. I think we have a better product for the value, and that's my job also to be helping defense industries co produce and collaborate with businesses here in Europe. I think we're making the tail of the F thirty five. Here in Belgium, we're making F thirty fives. In Italy we are partnering with Swedish and German and British interests on military defense. So I like to focus on where we can cooperate than where we can disagree.
Now, you are the ambassador to Belgium, and I want to talk about how closely aligned you feel the Belgium is with US positions on issues like, for example, the use of frozen Russian assets. Are they a good representative for US issues at the EU table?
I thought of it like that. Yes, I think we are aligned on so many more things than we may be deciding to argue about. I haven't really heard anything we're arguing about at the moment between Belgium and the US. And I think President Trump was supportive in a special way about making sure that these Russian sovereign assets here in Euroclear were safe and secure so that this could also be used in the negotiating table by Steve Wikoff
and the President and Secretary of Rubio. If that money was not here and someone had taken it or borrowed it, or played with it, or deployed it or invested it for whatever purposes they were thinking, I think it would be very dangerous for the negotiating table. Interests that are going on. So the fact that Bart de Waiver, who is the I think a great prime Minister of Belgium, stood up to the EU pressure on this is very admirable. I think it was very hard for him to do that,
but I'm very proud of him for doing that. Because if you're a business part listen, you're on Bloomberg, people understand this. If you have a clearinghouse that clears forty five trillion trillion dollars a year, you cannot mess with that system. And the uncertainty and instability of taking that money out would have been catastrophic