Exploring the reaction mechanism of the EU towards the United States

Abstract

International disputes which involve conflicts of interests between the EU and the US have gained much traction since President Trump took office. This paper studies the reaction mechanism of the EU towards the US. It establishes a link between the study of human behaviors and international relations through constructivism before applying Maslow's hierarchy of needs to the EU. It summarizes all the EU's responses to US policies that affect its interests, thereby helping to study the EU's past foreign policies, and predict the actions that the EU will take on international affairs in the future. By analyzing the four cases—the Paris Climate Agreement, the Iran Nuclear Deal, Nord Stream 2 and US-EU Trade War, the paper explains when the EU's demands at different tiers are negatively or positively affected by the U.S. policy, it provides a range of responses from mild compromise to tough retaliation which practiced the application of Maslow's theory to international relations.