The one-sided trade agreement that Donald Trump imposed on the EU illustrates how the US empire exploits its "allies" in Europe as vassals to benefit the American oil/gas industry, Big Tech corporations, and the military-industrial complex. This did not start with Trump, but he has accelerated the vassalization of the European Union. Political economist Ben Norton explains.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpf6ZeABP1I

Topics

0:00 Intro

1:04 US empire doesn't have allies, only vassals

2:14 US-EU trade deal & tariffs

5:19 China defended itself in trade war

6:19 Ursula von der Leyen on US energy

7:28 (CLIP) Trump on US-EU trade deal

7:54 USA benefits

8:15 (CLIP) Trump: "the biggest of all the deals"

8:28 Europe gets nothing

9:11 (CLIP) US makes no concessions to EU

9:57 (CLIP) Trump on US fossil fuel exports

10:20 US gets everything, EU gets nothing

11:02 Vassalization of Europe

12:27 BRICS expansion

13:22 NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte

14:03 (CLIP) NATO chief calls Trump "daddy"

14:17 Trump addresses "daddy" comment

14:42 (CLIP) Trump: I'm NATO's "daddy"

15:03 Trump leaks humiliating text messages

16:26 Failure of EU "strategic autonomy"

17:18 NATO demands military spending at 5% of GDP

18:42 US military-industrial complex benefits

20:14 Paying imperial tribute

20:48 Replacing welfare state with warfare state

21:44 EU spending on education

22:08 EU spending on healthcare

22:33 Trump & MAGA take off the mask

23:26 VP JD Vance attacks Europe

23:40 Kissinger: "to be America's friend is fatal"

24:20 Trump boasts of ending Nord Stream

25:39 (CLIP) Trump: "I ended Nord Stream 2"

25:59 US targets European infrastructure

26:26 (CLIP) Trump: US wants to sell oil/gas

26:53 US attacks European "allies"

27:27 Sabotage of Nord Stream pipelines

28:05 Who blew up Nord Stream?

29:20 West opposed UN investigation

30:06 Polish official said US blew up Nord Stream

30:47 Historical amnesia

31:17 Why Germany wanted Nord Stream

32:34 (CLIP) Trump: Europe must buy US oil/gas

32:48 Trump pressured Angela Merkel on Russia

33:15 (CLIP) Trump: Europe must cut Russia ties

34:12 Trump sanctioned Nord Stream

34:55 USA seeks to divide Europe & Russia

35:39 Biden threatened Nord Stream

36:02 (CLIP) Biden: We will end Nord Stream

36:36 Bipartisan vassalage

37:30 US energy exports to Europe

38:08 EU imports of oil

39:25 EU imports of natural gas

39:56 EU imports of LNG

40:45 Climate change catastrophe

41:20 Germany re-opens coal plants

42:00 Germany's pro-war "Greens"

43:19 US imperial strategy: divide Europe

44:56 Imperialist Mackinder's heartland theory

45:28 US fears of Europe-Russia alliance

46:23 NATO's goal: keep US on top

47:24 Deindustrialization of Europe

47:59 EU attacks top trading partner China

48:40 Why are EU leaders Atlanticists?

49:01 EU leaders are literally crying

49:26 EU elites invest in US financial assets

51:57 US Big Tech corporations

52:35 Comprador bourgeoisie

53:48 Western oligarchies

55:00 US empire fears Eurasian integration

56:15 Trump tries to divide Russia & China

56:33 Europe is at a geopolitical crossroads

58:36 Outro