DW: German finance minister warns of US trade war; BBC: Finnish PM Sanna Marin … Europe must make sure it is “building those capabilities when it comes to European defence …”

Bundesfinanzminister Lindner warnt mit Blick auf das US-amerikanische Maßnahmenpaket zur Inflationsbekämpfung vor einem Handelskrieg mit den Vereinigten Staaten.https://t.co/sv9VNKBosv

— Deutschlandfunk (@DLF) December 3, 2022

COGwriter

The above tweet, machine- translated into English, states:

Federal Finance Minister Lindner warns of a trade war with the United States with a view to the US package of measures to combat inflation.

The German news site, Deutsche Welle, reported the following:

German finance minister warns of US trade war

3 December 2022

German Finance Minister Christian Lindner warned Saturday over a brewing trade war between Europe and the United States concerning Washington’s multi-billion dollar climate protection and inflation package. …

“The USA is our partner of shared values, but at the same time there is an enormously protectionist economic policy,” he told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper …

Lindner said that the German economy, unlike France’s, is closely linked to the US market. He was referring to the US being a huge market for German automobiles, while French carmakers do not export there.

“That’s why Germany can’t have any interest in a trade war but has to rely on economic diplomacy.”

Lindner’s remarks follow a call earlier this week by German Economy Minister Robert Habeck for a “robust” response by Brussels to the new US subsidies.

What is the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)?

The IRA provides $370 billion (€357 billion) for climate protection and energy security, including subsidies for electric cars, batteries and renewable energy projects that are Made in the US.

The bill gives tax credits for each eligible renewable energy component produced in a US factory and a further 30% tax credit on the cost of new or upgraded factories that build green components. …

EU leaders say that €200 billion ($207 billion) out of the total is tied to provisions for domestic US manufacturing that potentially violate World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. …

During a visit to the United States this week, French President Emmanuel Macron described Washington’s new tax breaks as “super aggressive” and warned that the package would “divide the West.” https://www.dw.com/en/german-finance-minister-warns-of-us-trade-war/a-63975636

So, we continue to hear complaints from European leaders that the USA is violating various trade rules and causing friction. Here is a link to something posted here last month about that: CNBC: EU says it has serious concerns about Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act.

Furthermore, the Europeans believe that the USA is profiting too much–at Europe’s expense–because of fallout from the Russia-Ukraine conflict (see Politico: Europe accuses US of profiting from war).

The USA is causing major friction with the EU.

Yet, European leaders recognize that it is the USA that is providing the bulk of support for Ukraine:

3 December 2022

Finnish PM Sanna Marin has said Europe is “not strong enough” to stand up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on its own, and has had to rely on US support. …

The US is by far the largest provider of military assistance to Ukraine. …

Ms Marin said: “The United States has given a lot of weapons, a lot of financial aid, a lot of humanitarian aid to Ukraine and Europe isn’t strong enough yet.” https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63838350

While the Finnish Prime Minister is being positive towards the USA, notice that she added the word “yet.” So, consider that the following:

She added that Europe must make sure it is “building those capabilities when it comes to European defence, European defence industry, and making sure that we could cope in different kinds of situations”. …

Prime Minister Marin went on to criticise some European countries’ attempts at building closer ties with Russia in recent decades.

“For a long time, Europe was building a strategy for Russia… to buy energy from Russia and to closen those economic ties, and we thought that this would prevent the war,” she said.

But she said that mindset was “proven entirely wrong”.

European countries should have listened to states like Poland and the Baltics, she said, who had warned that Russia does not “care about their economic ties, they don’t care about the sanctions, they don’t care about any of that” when it comes to invading Ukraine.

Wide-reaching sanctions have been introduced by the EU and the US, among others, with the aim of limiting the resources Russia has to continue the war.

Many European Union and Nato member countries have also pledged to increase their defence spending following the start of the war.

In February, Germany announced an extra $113bn (£84bn) for its army, and a constitutional commitment to Nato’s military spending target of 2% of GDP. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63838350

Despite her understanding that sanctions would not work, and did not work to deter Russia, sanctioning Russia is a major approach taken by the EU and USA related to Ukraine.

That said, notice that Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin is calling for Europe to build its military capabilities and its defense industries.

Leaders in France, Germany, and elsewhere in Europe have called for action to do so as well.

Russia’s ‘special military operation’ into Ukraine has been a highly motivating factor as well. Related to that, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel::

18:27

Is the European Beast Growing Horns?

Does the conflict between Russia and Ukraine have prophetic ramifications? What about Ezekiel 38? Are we seeing a ‘historic shift’ in Europe to move towards more unity? What about non-EU nations like Sweden and Switzerland? Is Germany’s announcement to double its military spending to 100 million euros a big deal? Does the Bible tell of changes coming to Europe for it to rise up as a Babylonian unity successful military power? What about the United States of America and its British-descended allies? Could USA sanctions against Russia, including SWIFT restrictions, decrease international demand for USA dollars and cause inflation? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.

Here is a link to our video: Is the European Beast Growing Horns?

While the USA naively believes it will remain the world’s premier superpower, the Bible teaches that the power with the “strongest fortresses”–which in the 21st century is still the USA–will be conquered (Daniel11:39) and that the world will marvel that the power thought to have been eliminated–Europe–became so militarily successful (cf. Revelation 13:1-4).

Trade issues have turned allies into enemies.

The Bible teaches that a power that looks like the USA will one day be defeated by “friends” (Lamentations 1:1-2).

Trade will be a factor in what can be called World War III–and this war will be a conflict with Europe (but the ‘shooting’ aspect of this will not happen before 2025; for some details, see When Will the Great Tribulation Begin?).

We continue to see steps that are leading up to it.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Trade Disputes: CCOG Warnings Are Coming to Pass Trade tensions and talks of trade wars have escalated. US President Donald Trump has put Europe, China, Mexico, and other lands on notice that he wants to change how international trade with the USA has been going. Tariffs, retaliatory tariffs, and even more tariffs are being implemented. Is this all just happenstance? Are we yet in a trade war? What will Europe do? Has the Church of God been warning about trade disputes and a coming trade war for decades? What about the Continuing Church of God (CCOG)? What has been warned, what has been happening, and what will happen? Will trade disputes be a factor in World War III (WW3)? Dr. Thiel explains what has been taught and what to expect.
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”? Is an emerging European power “the daughter of Babylon”? What is ahead for Europe? Here is a link to a video titled: Can You Prove that the Beast to Come is European?
European Technology and the Beast of Revelation Will the coming European Beast power would use and develop technology that will result in the taking over of the USA and its Anglo-Saxon allies? Is this possible? What does the Bible teach? Here is a related YouTube video: Military Technology and the Beast of Revelation.
Must the Ten Kings of Revelation 17:12 Rule over Ten Currently Existing Nations? Some claim that these passages refer to a gathering of 10 currently existing nations together, while one group teaches that this is referring to 11 nations getting together. Is that what Revelation 17:12-13 refers to? The ramifications of misunderstanding this are enormous. A related sermon is titled Ten Kings of Revelation and the Great Tribulation.
WTO/TTIP and the Babylonian Beast Will international trade agreements like WTO/TTIP/CETA lead to the fulfillment of end time prophecies concerning the Babylonian Beast power that the Book of Revelation warns against? What does the Bible teach? A related video would be WTO Trade Deal and the Rise of the European Beast Power.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?
British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?
Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.
Australia and New Zealand in Prophecy Do biblical prophecies help explain the wealth blessings for Australia and New Zealand? Might cursings from disobedience come in the 21st century? Here is a link to a related sermon: Australia and New Zealand: Origins and Prophecy.
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? What about other peoples? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about Africa, Asia, South America, and the Islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA, Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications, 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes, Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty.