Prof. Ted Malloch, the man widely tipped to become the next U.S. ambassador to the EU, believed that the time is ripe to re-evaluate key U.S. assumptions about Europe.

This means, he said, that the United States should reappraise its entire relationship with Europe and its future union or disunion.

"The long-held State Department view, since (former Secretary of State) Dulles, has been that the best way to achieve peace in Europe is by uniting it. The Franco-German relationship was at the center of such thinking. No one wants Europe to fail or instantly disintegrate. But the question today is what kind of Europe, and what kind of union, do we want?"he asked.

Trump, more recently, has appeared to soften his tone on the EU.

In a meeting on April 20 with Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, he said that a strong Europe was "very important" to him and the United States. Trump also called for "balanced, reciprocal" trade relations with Italy.

Such remarks present a vivid contrast to his earlier statements during the election campaign, when he praised Brexit and labelled the EU a "vehicle for Germany."

Norbert Roettgen, the chair of the German parliament's foreign affairs committee, said Europeans need to propose "projects of common interest" to Trump and preserve "Western unity" on Russia.

However, he admitted, "It is difficult to forge a relationship with this U.S. president."

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