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After invading Ukraine, Putin is starting to break the West.
The Europeans are angry with Joe Biden's administration and accuse the Americans of making a lot of money from the war.
One senior official told POLITICO that the U.S. is making more money from the war because they are selling more gas and weapons.
The comments were backed in public and private by officials, diplomats and ministers around the world. The poisoning of the atmosphere is likely to be welcomed by the Kremlin.
The senior EU official said that the double hit of trade disruption from the U.S. and high energy prices could turn public opinion against the war effort. Public opinion in EU countries is changing.
The EU's chief diplomat called on the US to respond to European concerns. He told POLITICO that Americans take decisions which have an economic impact on them.
Europe's complaints were turned down by the U.S. The rise in gas prices in Europe is the result of Putin's energy war against Europe, according to a Biden's National Security Council spokesman. The NSC said that exports of natural gas from the US to Europe increased dramatically.
The biggest point of tension in recent weeks has been Biden's green subsidies and taxes that the EU says unfairly tilt trade away from them. Washington has shown no sign that it will back down.
The disruption caused by Putin's invasion of Ukraine is tipping European economies into recession with inflation rocketing and a devastating squeeze on energy supplies.
Europeans pay more for gas from the U.S. than they do in America. There is a chance that orders for American-made military kit will go up as European armies run out of supplies.
It's too much for top officials in Europe. France's President said high U.S. gas prices were not friendly and Germany's Economy Minister called on the US to show more solidarity.
The way Biden's government ignores the impact of its domestic economic policies on European allies has angered ministers and diplomats in other parts of the bloc.
The senior official said that Biden seemed unaware of the issue when EU leaders tackled him over high U.S. gas prices. AmericanIgnorance about the consequences for Europe was a major problem according to other EU officials.
The Europeans are frustrated by the lack of prior information and consultation.
The officials on both sides of the Atlantic are aware of the risks of the toxic atmosphere. EU and U.S. diplomats agree that the squabble is what Putin wants.
The growing dispute over Biden's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has put fears over a trade war high on the political agenda again. EU trade ministers are due to discuss their response on Friday as officials in Brussels draw up plans for an emergency warchest of subsidies to save European industries from collapse.
The Inflation Reduction Act is worrying according to the Dutch Trade Minister. The impact on the European economy is large.
The European Parliament's lead person on the transatlantic relationship said that the U.S. is following a domestic agenda.
The price setting for European buyers of gas is not the result of any U.S. government policy, according to an American official. The official said that US companies have been reliable in supplying natural gas to Europe.
The official said that the difference between the export and import prices doesn't go to U.S. exporters but to companies that resell the gas in the EU. France's TotalEnergies is the biggest holder of long-term U.S. gas contracts in Europe.
The NSC said that the increase in global supplies, led by the United States, helped European allies and partners get storage levels to an encouraging place.
The American side doesn't seem to be convincing the Europeans. The European Commissioner for the Internal Market said on French TV on Wednesday that the US sells gas to Europe with a four-pronged effect. When something goes wrong, it's necessary for allies to say it.
American companies have found cheaper energy to be a huge advantage. New investments in the U.S. and relocation of businesses away from Europe to American factories are some of the things businesses are considering. Solvay, a multinational chemical company, announced this week that it is choosing the US over Europe for new investments.
Despite the energy disagreements, it wasn't until Washington announced a $369 billion industrial subsidy scheme to support green industries that the panic began.
One EU diplomat said that the inflation reduction act had changed everything. Washington is our ally or not.
The legislation is a landmark for Biden. Some trading partners have concerns about how the electric vehicle tax credit provisions in the IRA will operate in practice with respect to their producers, and NSC is committed to working with them to better understand and do what we can to address their concerns. The game is not a zero-sum one. The IRA is going to grow the clean energy investment pie.
The EU doesn't see that the same way. According to an official from France's foreign affairs ministry, the diagnosis is that these subsidies will distort competition. Bruno Le Maire accused the US of going down China's path of economic isolationism. Europe shouldn't be the last of the Mohicans according to him.
The EU wants to prevent European industry from being wiped out by American competitors. Reinhard Btikofer said that there was a crisis of trust in the relationship.
Marie-Pierre Vedrenne said that at some point you need to assert yourself. Power struggles are what we are in. You lose when you are not prepared physically and mentally.
Money flowing into the American defense sector is causing irritation.
Since the beginning of the war, the U.S. has supplied more than 15 billion dollars in weapons and equipment to the Ukrainians. About 8 billion of military equipment has been supplied by the EU.
Problems in the supply chain and the production of chips may take years to replenish some sophisticated weapons according to a senior official from a European capital. Fears have been raised that the U.S. defense industry can make more money from the war.
The Pentagon is working on a plan to speed up arms sales as allies demand more from the military.
The money they are making on weapons could help Americans understand that making all this cash on gas may be too much.
The diplomat said that a discount on gas prices could help us negotiate with third countries for gas. To give the impression that your best ally is making huge profits out of your troubles is not good.
Sarah Anne Aarup and Gloria Gonzalez contributed to the report.
Comments from a NSC spokesman have been added.
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