On the campaign trail, Trump threatened to slap a universal 10 percent tariff on imported goods. He also threatened to turn off Ukraine aid and to stop supporting NATO countries that do not invest 2 percent of their GDP on defense.
EU leaders were gathering for an informal summit in Budapest for talks on Draghi’s report released in September, which recommends urgently filling an €800 billion-per-year investment gap.
Reeling from the shock of Trump’s victory, Draghi’s recommendations may help to sharpen minds, even though two of the EU’s biggest economies, France and Germany, are embroiled in domestic woes at home.
Asked whether Germany’ collapsing coalition would hamper talks in Budapest, Draghi told POLITICO that the “overall state of European governments is what it is and we have to [adjust] to the times of the politics.”
“It’s not a report that has to be acted on tonight,” he added.
Speaking to reporters, Draghi said the most urgent thing was not to agree on an investment plan Friday but to “prevent the fragmentation of the Single Market and a fragmentation of the capital markets.”
Draghi has warned that the Single Market has been successful but remains highly fragmented, preventing EU companies from scaling up and competing internationally.
