UNITED NATIONS, NY – The foreign ministers of European countries with close ties to the US responded to the claims of Vice President Kamala Harris, the world leader who “laughed” at former President Trump, rejecting the claim.
During the September presidential debate, Harris said, “World leaders are laughing at Donald Trump. I have spoken to military leaders, some of whom work with you, and they say you are a disgrace.”
When asked about the quote, foreign ministers attending the United Nations High Level Week stressed that they do not have a single view of the US election and will work with whoever wins.
“We are America’s friends,” said Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, noting Italy and the US “are both sides of the same coin.” “If Trump is going to be the new American president, we will work with him when he is the American president.”
ISRAEL MILITARY SAYS HEZBOLLAH LEADER HASSAN NASRALLAH KILLED IN BEIRUT STRIKE
“We worked with Biden, Bush, Reagan, Clinton, Obama,” Tajani added. “For us, the transatlantic relationship is a key strategy of our foreign policy, European and American.”
The foreign ministers of Lithuania and the Czech Republic stressed that they would not interfere with the election by declaring their preferences, but said they “offer the American people to decide.”
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, center, looks on as President Trump and Poland’s president, Andrzej Duda, talk during a working lunch at the NATO leaders’ summit in Watford, England, December 4, 2019. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
“My role is not to comment on these political statements,” Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said.
However, Lipavsky praised Trump’s “strong” message on defense spending, which he hoped Europe would continue to embrace in the face of Russian aggression against Ukraine.
Investigators Reveal China Tried to Smuggle Drones into LIBYA Disguised as COVID Aid
“The bottom line is that Donald Trump, at the time, had a strong message for Europe, and that message was quite resonant and now it’s resonating even more because he’s saying more in your defense,” Lipavsky said.
“My administration is spending more on our defense,” he said. “We want to reach that 2% of GDP, we will reach it this year, and we will continue next year. So, (if) Donald Trump will be president with this message, ‘Please spend 2%, “we will be okay.”
President Trump reacts next to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg as he attends a working lunch during the NATO leaders’ summit in Watford, England, December 4, 2019. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis highlighted the “very long history” between the two countries, saying the relationship was “more than political.”
Instead, he reiterated his message that whoever wins the election must focus on the same defense spending message that Trump pushed during his first administration.
TALIBAN DENYS ALLEGATIONS OF DISCRIMINATION AS ‘ABSURD’ AFGHANISTAN’S WOMEN WANT TO GO IN PUBLIC
Before the Trump administration, only a handful of NATO members committed to spending 2% of their GDP on defense, but that number has increased significantly due to Trump’s pressure and tough stance on the issue.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg reported in June that 23 of the 32 member states had met minimum spending requirements, which helped increase the bloc’s ability to support Ukraine and, potentially, prevent Russian aggression beyond its current ambitions.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban with former President Trump during a visit to Mar-a-Lago in Florida in July. (@PM_ViktorOrban)
No European country, though, has touted the success of Trump’s first term and expressed hopes for a strong second term like Hungary. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó said his government would have “great expectations” for the new Trump administration.
“We have great hopes because we believe that many of the major crises that give us a lot of concern can be solved by the administration of President Trump,” said Szijjártó, noting that he is NATO’s longest-serving foreign minister with 10 years. years under the belt.
HUNGARIAN FM REMEMBERS THE ‘EXPERIENCE’ OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS STRONG, THE COUNTRY ‘HOPEFULLY WE ALL’ IN THE FORMER PRESIDENT
“I don’t see anyone laughing at Trump,” Szijjártó said. “What I’ve seen is a lot of fear. I’ve seen a lot of fear of an honest US president, not held hostage by the liberal mainstream, representing a patriotic position, speaking clearly about America first.”
Trump and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán have done nothing to hide their rosy friendship, with Trump calling the Hungarian leader a “strong European” who spoke highly of the former president.
Orbán proved this to be a mutual dynamic when he chose to leave the NATO summit in Washington, DC, earlier this year instead of meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in Florida to discuss foreign relations.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“Under President Trump, everything is under control,” Szijjártó said. “Since President Trump has left office, the whole global security situation has deteriorated. So, I mean, this is an experience.”
“If we are based on our experience, we say yes, from the perspective of US-Hungarian relations, I think President Trump will bring more impetus, freshness, dynamism to this relationship. And I think that if President Trump is elected, I think the world has a good opportunity to it’s a much more peaceful place compared to the current situation.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
