BERLIN

If Donald Trump wins next year's US presidential election, it would be a “catastrophe” for Europe, Germany’s defense minister said Tuesday.

Boris Pistorius made the remarks during a panel discussion at the Berlin Foreign Policy Forum.

“Whoever comes to the White House, one case would be a catastrophe, the other case would be much better,” Pistorius said while commenting on the impact of the 2024 US presidential election on transatlantic ties.

He said even if a Democrat wins the election, Europe will continue to face challenges in terms of ties as Washington’s focus would be more on the Indo-Pacific region.

“If they do that, they will probably not be able to maintain their engagement in Europe at the same level,” he said.

Pistorius said European nations within the NATO alliance will have to take on more responsibility for Europe’s security after the US presidential election.

Trump, who served as president from 2017 to 2021, had repeatedly criticized America’s European allies for not sharing the financial and military burden of NATO and even threatened to pull US troops out of Europe.