The Guardian view on Europe’s payments problem: sovereignty starts at the till | Editorial

Donald Trump's leverage over Visa and Mastercard highlights a blind spot in Europe's independence' strategy. Emulating India's response might help

When the centre-left French politician Aurore Lalucq posted a warning last Wednesday that Donald Trump could cut off Europe from international payment systems, the clip went viral. To many, her message made sense. After all, if Mr Trump was prepared to test allies' boundaries over Greenland, it is not far-fetched to imagine Visa and Mastercard becoming used against a recalcitrant Europe.

The US can turn off payment systems it controls. Russia learned this first-hand after sanctions were rightly applied for its invasion of Ukraine. As up to 60% of Russian retail transactions depended on Visa and Mastercard for authorisation, the ban left many ordinary people stranded without access to funds and unable to buy goods. Under Mr Trump, America's goal is to help Europe correct its current trajectory". Given such talk, Ms Lalucq, who chairs theEuropean parliament's economic and monetary affairs committee, is not wrong in calling for an Airbus of European payments" to protect the EU.