Europe can no longer rely on its strongest ally, the United States, even in defense. It is not only about the economies and the running war, but also the something we have been adding to the Americans for a long time – military equipment.
Europe intensifies efforts to find alternatives to American products and services. The reason is the increasing commercial tension, the threat of tariffs and the controversial White House policy against traditional allies. The trend applies not only to consumer goods, but also to digital services and even defense systems. More and more Europeans refuse to financially support US companies and are looking for home alternatives.
The most prickled example of the European diversion from US products is a sharp decline in Tesla electric vehicles. The European Association of Car Manufacturers (ACEA) has declined sales of Tesla vehicles in Europe in the first months of 2025 by more than 42 percent compared to the same period last year. The market share of the company fell to 1.8 percent in February from 2.8 percent in the same month of last year, with the company sold less than 17,000 cars compared to more than 28,000 in the same month of 2024.
Analysts attribute this dramatic slump in addition to increasing competition and controversies associated with the owner and director of Elon Musk, who became a close advisor to President Trump President and openly supports the far right -wing parties in Europe. “It will be interesting to see to what extent the demand will be revived when the new Y Model hits markets throughout the region,” said Felipe Munoz, global analyst at Jato Dynamics.
Danes indicate European products with an asterisk
In Denmark, the Salling Group supermarket chain, which operates Bilka, photo and net shops, a black star for electronic products from European brands. This step came after customers demanded easier to distinguish European products from American products.
“We make it easier for customers to buy European brands,” explained Anders Hagh CEO on LinkedIn. According to him, supermarkets will continue to offer products from around the world, but the new designation is intended to serve as an additional service for those customers who prefer European products.
Consumers in Denmark and other European countries are increasingly marked as “made in the US”. Many of them perceive their purchasing decisions as a form of protest against President Trump’s policy, especially his statements on territorial claims to Greenland, an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark.
Bo Albertus, the headmaster of the school in Denmark and the administrator of the Danish Facebook group focused on the boycott of American goods, which has 90,000 members, says, “I felt helpless. We all feel that we are doing something. We act by our frustration.”
Digital alternatives attract attention
The portal that catalogs European alternatives to digital services and products has seen a sharp increase in traffic after Donald Trump’s inauguration. The founder of the Constantin Chart from Austria that the attendance “sharply increased”, suggesting increased interest in European alternatives.
According to Grafa, the number of visits increased from 25,000 to 70,000 visitors in the month of the election, and after Trump’s January joining the office in 2025, more than 200,000 users visited a month.
One of the reasons for the growing interest in European technologies are. The transfer of EU citizens’ data under the EU-US Data Privacy Agreement was at risk after Trump’s administration has taken over control of the authorities to supervise this agreement.
“It is only a matter of time before Schrems will come,” warns a chart with reference to lawsuits initiated by Austrian activist Max Schrems, who have previously led to the cancellation of the data sharing agreements between the EU and the US.
Popular European digital alternatives include a French QWANT search engine instead of Google, a German Deepl translator instead of Google Translate, Swedish Elastx Cloud Services Provider instead of Amazon, and Danish analytical tools Mouseflow or Dreamdata instead of Google Analytics.
Proton, FairPhone and others – European response to US dominance
European consumers have a growing number of European alternatives to commonly used products and services. A good example is the Swiss company Proton, which offers encrypted email services as an alternative to US providers as Gmail. Their services include a portfolio similar to Google. They provide mail, calendar, storage or password manager, all applications are developed and operated with an emphasis on privacy and data security.
The Dutch company FairPhone represents an ethical and sustainable alternative to American smartphones. The company focuses on the ethical acquisition of materials, repahability of equipment and long life. Customers can choose between a clean Android or /E /OS, Android variant without Google.
“It is very important to say that we still like Americans, we still love the country,” said Mads Mouritzen, who founded the Danish Facebook group for a boycott of American goods. “We do not like the current situation and we do not like the current administration.”
The European Commission and Member States are increasingly cautious about the dependence on American technology giants such as Microsoft. Henna Virkkunen, Commissioner for the technological sovereignty of Henna Virkkunen, declared in the European Parliament last week: “There is a need for European alternatives.”
European fighters instead of US F-35
In the field of defense, several countries are considering European alternatives to American weapons, especially the F-35 fighters. The reason is the growing concerns about the reliability of the US and possible restrictions in the use of American military equipment.
Turkey is the purchase of Eurofighter typehoon fighters in the upgrade of its aerial forces. A country that has historically relied on US fighters is considering an offer from a European consortium including Airbus SE, Bae Systems and Leonardo Spa. Turkey is willing to buy both new and used Eurofighter fighters.
Canada, who committed to win 88 F-35A fighters in 2023, and the first 16 had already paid, now for the remaining aircraft. Similarly, Portugal has decided not to continue to procure the F-35 aircraft and prefer a European alternative instead.
The Portuguese quoted the “unpredictability” of the US for Trump, especially after its comments questioning NATO’s obligations and stopping news sharing with Ukraine. This disrupted confidence in the long -term support of the US.
Director of the Military Division of the European Airbus aircraft manufacturer before purchasing US military equipment: “Purchase of military products from the United States will only increase our dependence on other countries,” said Michael SchöllHorn, CEO of Airbus Defense and Space.
According to Schöllhorn, there are chances that Berlin will order more Eurofighter fighters, now higher. “Eurofighter is the backbone of the Air Force AS AS TRANCHE 5 We are preparing an aircraft for the future,” he said.
Ultimately, the recent steps of President Trump’s administration could encourage European countries to rely more on their own technologies and abilities, reducing their dependence on the US and strengthening European sovereignty.
