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Spain’s Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo has called on the European Union to remain united in the face of harsh criticism from the Trump administration, which recently warned that Europe’s allegedly “weak” leadership and poor economic policies could spell its demise.
Cuerpo, who oversees one of the euro zone’s fastest-growing economies, said it was time for the EU to take the lead rather than react to events, calling for closer integration among member states and a renewed push towards perfecting the euro structure.
“This is a very personal thing, but the reaction this instills in me is, ‘Let’s prove them wrong,'” he told Euronews in a series of interviews. Includes 12 minutes. “We need to switch from reacting to external events to acting. There is an urgency and there is momentum towards it.”
Last week, the United States released its latest national security strategy, arguing that while Europe remains an ally, the continent must reverse course on some of its landmark policies or risk “civilization annihilation.”
The document slammed environmental policies, digital regulations and the intolerable influx of illegal immigrants. President Donald Trump echoed those concerns privately in an interview, saying Europe is “changing too much” and that the top leadership is “weak.”
Andrew Puzder, the US ambassador to the EU, echoed these comments in an interview with Euronews, insisting that “Europe must not lose its identity.”
The campaign went global after Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and owner of Company X, called for the abolition of the European Union after his social media platform was fined by the European Commission for violating digital market rules. The billionaire, who has more than 229 million social media followers, claimed the bloc was no longer a democracy and was run by “commissioners”.
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Cuerpo, who was appointed minister in 2023, pushed back, arguing that Spain’s experience had proven the benefits of being a member of the EU.
Madrid joined the EU in 1986 and has experienced rapid economic development, becoming the eurozone’s fourth largest economy.
“As Europeans, we are very aware of the importance of unity within the EU and how well it protects us,” he told Euronews.
“From Spain’s point of view, there is no case other than integration and further integration within the EU, there are no other scenarios.”
Spain’s economy has experienced strong economic growth this year. The government expects economic growth to accelerate by 2.9% this year, faster than Germany, Italy and France combined.
Still, Madrid’s conservative opposition parties have attacked the government over its chronic inability to approve budgets, a problem the government says shows administrative weakness in its third year in office.
Critics also say the lack of an annual budget violates democratic checks and balances, a claim the government denies.