EU leaders ready to negotiate with Trump - but not to compromise

European Union leaders say they are ready to negotiate with Donald Trump's U.S. administration but insist that its values won't be compromised. This comes after Trump warned on Monday, shortly after taking the oath of office, that the EU should buy more U.S. liquified natural gas (LNG) to avoid the threat of tariffs.

"Our first priority will be to engage early [with the U.S.], discuss common interests and be ready to negotiate. We will be pragmatic, but we will always stand by our principles," European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen told the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday.

The U.S. is already the bloc's largest source of LNG and a European Commission spokesperson told a Brussels media briefing that the priority is to have a conversation and engage with the new U.S. administration.

Exchanges between the U.S. and EU account for 30 percent of global trade and are worth over $1.5 trillion per year. Trump says that the relationship is unfair and has called on the EU to both spend more on defense and address what he claims to be an unbalanced trade arrangement.

EU officials however maintain that while the EU has a surplus when it comes to the trade of goods with the U.S. that is offset by America's trade in services.

"The EU has a substantial trade in goods surplus with the U.S., whereas the U.S. has a substantial trade in services surplus vis-à-vis the EU," said EU Commission Spokesperson Olof Gill at a recent briefing.

Amid threats of widespread duties on European products, Von der Leyen has warned that there's a lot at stake for both sides.

"In this spirit, we will need to work together to avoid a global race to the bottom, because it is in no one's interests to break the bonds of the global economy," she said. "Rather, we need to modernize the rules to sustain our ability to produce mutual gain for our citizens."

Members of the European Parliament have also met to discuss the future of the EU-U.S. trade relationship. The EU's Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Maros Sefcovic, said in an address to parliament that he regretted Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris Climate Agreement and maintains that the bloc will stay the course when it comes to the green transition and its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.

"We'll be a pragmatic partner, ready to cooperate and negotiate. We'll also stand by our principles and defend EU interests," Sefcovic added in a social media post.

EU officials say that the world has entered a new era of harsh geo-strategic competition. But they call on global leaders to not make it a race to the bottom.

Leaders here in Brussels say they are looking forward to working with the new U.S. administration but insist that Europe is open for business and will work with any nations where interests align.