This paper analyses the evolution of trade diplomacy between the European Union (EU) and North America (the United States and Canada) since the early 2000s, considering external crises such as the 2008 financial downturn, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the ongoing war in Ukraine, as well as internal political dynamics, since all affected bilateral trades and economic relations. The above-mentioned external shocks have indeed contributed to the fragmentation of the global economic order, affecting EU-North America economic relations in distinct ways, while internal political shifts have determined changes in national political economies. In the case of the US, international trends as well as internal dynamics have been leading towards a progressive  institutionalization of a “new realist” economic approach, tying the economy to national security with a strong emphasis on national sovereignty, state action and the use of force. With the second Trump administration taking office, the economic ideology has shifted decisively towards a mercantilist approach, aiming for geo-economic control and a positive trade balance, while neglecting the stabilizing function of long-term trade partnerships.

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