As it seems more than likely that Donald Trump will become the republican presidential candidate, he has in effect already sounded the death knell of US participation in NATO and other US international alliances.
On Feb. 10, Trump surpassed his previous most outrageous comments, by claiming that “one of the presidents of a big country” had asked him whether the US would still defend the country if they were invaded by Russia even if they didn’t pay. Trump recalled that he told that leader: “No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them [Russia] to do whatever the hell they want,” apparently encouraging Moscow to attack a US ally.
Frighteningly, most US opinion polls suggest that Trump will probably win the US presidential elections in November. That will be a catastrophe for all democracies of the world, especially for those in Europe, which directly face the Russian threat. If Trump becomes president again, no NATO security guarantee will be credible.
The accuracy of opinion polls nine months before the elections might be debatable, but the risk of a Trump victory is a clear and present danger. Europe needs to prepare itself for the possible demise of NATO and the US security umbrella, which has guaranteed peace in Europe for 75 years.
The Financial Times summarized the situation succinctly in an editorial on Feb. 10: “Europe can no longer count on America’s security umbrella Trump is undermining its safety and the continent must respond.”
Putin is a "Small Pathetic Man" Who Needs More Wars to Survive
It continued: “If Trump is not colluding with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he is undoubtedly serving his interests.” The obvious conclusion for the news site is: “Europeans have to start thinking the unthinkable: how to plan for war without America.”
A major national security threat in the US is that it harbors millions of anonymous companies, and according to a verdict by the rightwing US Supreme Court in 2010 (“Citizens United”) unlimited amounts of anonymous corporate funding are allowed in US politics. In recent elections, anonymous companies have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the funding of both parties, and nobody knows who is behind these dark funds. The money can come from Russia or the Persian Gulf or from organized criminals.
Meanwhile, sensible Eastern Europeans predict that Russia is preparing to attack the Baltics and Poland in 3-5 years’ time. This is the eventuality for which Europe needs to prepare.
Since the US is unable to defend itself against alien dark money, Europe had better prepare to defend itself. It needs to adopt a comprehensive European security strategy. This could be done by the European memberts of NATO or the European Union, but it is vital that to include the United Kingdom, which probably has the best European military force. Europeans are not used to thinking strategically or on their own, so this requires serious reimagination.
First of all, Europe needs to establish a common security strategy not completely dependent on the possibly unreliable United States. Such a strategy needs to establish the role of each European country in warfare and military supplies. The EU must step out of its old inertia and consider what arms it really needs to face the Russian threat - all options must be open.
Secondly, arms expenditures must be given top priority as during wartime, given that Europe can no longer trust the United States. In recent years, Europe as a whole has spent 1.5 percent of GDP on its military, while the United States currently spends 3.5 percent of GDP and 6 percent of GDP in the 1980s. Europe has to swiftly raise its military expenditures to 3-4 percent of GDP and arm as fast as possible, following the Polish example which has gone to 4 percent.
Third,ly the European armaments industry needs to be integrated and fully open as a Single EU Market, which must be applied also to armaments and related industrial cooperation as it is in the United States.
Ultimately, Europe needs to face up to today's reality: Either Ukraine (and implicitly the West) wins, or Russia wins the current war. The obvious conclusion is that Russia must be defeated. Ukraine's cause is ours. We have to do whatever it takes to defeat Russia. The Baltic nations and the Poles understand that we must be grateful to the Ukrainians for all they have done and continue to do to defend the West.
The obvious conclusion is that Europe must deliver all the arms and finances Ukraine needs to not only stay afloat and win but should also invite Kyiv to join NATO on the 75th anniversary of NATO and maintain this alliance regardless of what happens with the US.
The best way of financing Ukraine is to confiscate all Russian sovereign assets in the West and transfer them to Ukraine as war reparations. There is no conceivable excuse for the West not to confiscate Russian state assets in the West, given how Russia has violated all international laws.
The possible election of Trump as US president is more likely than not to be a disaster for Europe’s security, so Europe must prepare itself as fast as possible.
The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.
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Comments (11)
Trump was right! Now that we know where the 61B is going (20%) to Ukraine DOD, salaries, pensions. The rest divided between US power brokers. My vote goes to Trump! Remember all Americas wars were started by Democrats, Civil War, WW1, WW2, Korea and Vietnam. The Democrats are not the Champions of the poor and destitute, they were even against the civil rights movement and orchestrated…funded the riots across America in 2016.
It shames me to think that Trump and Mike Johnson are preventing the bill for the money for Ukraine. How can they live with themselves knowing human lives are being lost directly from what they are doing. And endangering us in the process. How despicable of them to do this. When I think of politics, I think also of corruption. Trump and Mike Johnson are helping Russia to win the war. Now why? I can't help but think money from a very rich man named Putin.This could be treason if there was proof. I wonder if there isn't some law that is being broken.
PS As I read the comments below almost all of us think something is not right in Trumps interference and Mike Johnson refusal to present the Bill. I also can't seem to get Putin out of mind with these 2 behavior. Putin wealth at the expense of Russian people is enough to help Trump financing and make Mike Johnson rich. I feel interference in our government is going on. The Republican party is acting so weird not traditional behavior. Biden said the other day he has not ever seen anything like this behavior before. I agree. There has to be a reason and Putin comes to mind. I know for sure that 2 out of 3 people are criminals. Mike comes from a state known for their criminal Politicians.
Trump will move America away from the woke philosophies of Biden and the democrats and I will congratulate him on that score. Unfortunately ,both Republicans and Democrats will probably lead America into isolationism. Europe and NATO may have to adjust to defending Western culture without the US. I see no reason why Europe could not defend itself.
@Gavan Duffy, Putinrump wishes to lower the USA into the putins cesspool.
Just during his disastrous presidential term alone putinrump lavished praise on putin ~80 times. A person would need to be pretty dense to not get whose side rumps MRGA movement is on (RUSSIAs).
I say let his own words incriminate him. Here is are some other putinrump quotes.
This one he actually plagiarized from Putins 2020 speech.
12/16/23 “It shows the rottenness of the American political system, which cannot pretend to teach others about democracy,” Trump quoted Putin saying in the speech. Trump added: “They’re all laughing at us.”.....He also went on in the party speech to defend the now incarcerated insurrectionist that tried to overthrow the USA's legally elected president on Jan 6th, 2020 calling them "hostages".
Putin hates true democracy with fair elections and the rule of laws to protect the people from corruption. In both his actions and words so does Trump. Two peas in a pod.
Meanwhile the USA ranks 28th on the International corruption transparency scale (Denmark has the top ranking), and russia is way down at 141st place.....that is leadership model Trump aspires to lower the USA towards.
The whole article is based on the assumption that Russia wants to attack Europe for whatever reason (this is not discussed and is presented as a fact). Whereas in fact they don't have neither forces nor motivation to do so.
Their solo interest is to sell gas and other shit to Europe as currently they are limited in doing so and are being replaced by the US as the main oil supplier (you can guess how costly it is for Europe)
The USA has bigger problems as the nation faces a serious risk of total collapse of their corrupt governance model. Who would have wondered if the US can become a 'Failed State" Putin is happy to see and working hard to support and encourage such a condition. trump and his blind supporters are pushing for this collapse. Making way for a Dictatorship. Americans must wake up to the threat within that Putin is formally supporting.
@John Smith, I agree everyone in NATO has to pull the weight. The 2014 recommended target was 2% of GDP to be spent on each's military capacity. Counting what each of the 31 members has bought / sent in the way of weapons to Ukraine, 21 members hit that target the last 2 years. It should be noted that some that had not hit the recommendation yet were nonetheless some of the larger contributors to NATO in monetary terms.
The issue that sane folks should have with putinrump is that if the USA did violate NATO and failed to assist its allies is they would likely fall to russia if attacked. All their resources would become russia's. NATO would lose each's contribution. Repeat and rinse with each NATO member russia is allowed to swallow up. Like with most putinrump proposed policies this would very quickly MAKE AMERICA LESS AGAIN.
It should also be remembered most these members have never started a war, but have all readily supported the USA in its defensive wars including as recently as 2001 when the USA triggered Article 5 for Afghanistan.
It should also be remembered that the USA through punitive trade policies makes it difficult for some members to sustain domestic war manufacturing. Trump's administration did this in 2017. The USA lobby effort for allies to only buy USA weapons is formidable. Russia will not buy USA weapons.
They should have been doing that already. The reality is NATO is not a charity it's a mutual defense pact and if you aren't spending and doing your part you are not only putting your own country at risk should there be an attack but you are also unable to assist in the situation article 5 gets triggered
To many European countries have gotten used to outsourcing their security to Americans and investing funds that should be going to their defense departments instead on domestic priorities. Well, Americans are tired of the freeloaders either shape up or ship out.
Regardless of ultimately temporary political and military factors and alliances, the decline of American economic and thus military power will inevitably limit willingness and long term capacity to remain expensively engaged in conflicts and military alliances in European and World arenas.
Previously solid ‘willingness” will constantly be undermined by cyber and other forms of misinformation operations .
It’s far beyond time for Europe to budget and spend credible amounts of money on military re-equipment at a pace that exceeds what Russia can hope to achieve.
That is far better self reliant deterrence, that is also vastly more likely to induce America to join in, because rusks and costs to America would then be more acceptable to them.
Donald Trump is a compromised, manipulated useful idiot of Putin's Spy Agency. Putin's Spy Agency found out from its secret ally Mossad that Trump did few things illegal and immoral-so it made him an offer that he couldn't refuse or it manipulated him.Lesson to learn? If you are a political or a corporate figure, don't do anything illegal or immoral or both so no spy agency-no criminal organization-nobody can make you an offer that you can't refuse-or manipulate you. Better to assume that you can't trust anybody or you are being monitored 24/7.
rand paul is pro russian. He is affiliated / backed by the koch brothers who also created a "think tank" called "Defense Priorities" which echoes communist russia's demands of less US military bases, dissolving of NATO, and a reluctance to impose sanctions on north korea.One of paul's key backers...charles koch... the same koch brothers that have donated millions of dollars to "Donors Trust and Donors Capital" which also funds the "Heritage Foundation" recently spread russian propaganda about Ukraine, the koch family made a fortune developing oil and gas in russia as far back as soviet times.
jessie benton sound familiar? A GOP operative working for rand paul & mitch mcconnell funnelling russian money, caught and convicted.
NRA also taking russian money.
nikki haley also accepts money from the koch brothers.
Then there is mike johnson who attends white supremacist meetings of the cnp 4th of October 2019 and used US taxpayer money to travel to this hate fest.
mike johnson as of 14/02/24 has also just trivialized a national security threat posed by russia discovered by US house intelligence chairman.
trump also wants his daughter in law to be republican national chairperson, if this happens, trump will control through his daughter in law, the republican party and who gets donation money and how much.
#GOPMAGAEqualsNationalBolsheviks
@Joseph Swanson, Conspiracies everywhere eh ?
Reminds me of fanciful stories circulating in Egypt after the 6 day war.
All totally disconnected from reality, yet strongly connected to Nassers continuity
Wonder how todays claims also leverage the imaginary world towards particular narratives.
@David, I see no conspiracies in the above comments. Just facts.. Please list the conspiracies and back up with facts.
@Maddy, Seizing russia's foreign assets does not even register on the scale of absolute evil that your master putin is measured on. In his quest to steal the entire country of Ukraine, putin has stolen 10's of thousands of lives Maddy!!!
Irreplaceable innocent lives... all ages, genders and vocations permanently stolen from russia's smaller neighbour Maddy. Putins murderous debt also includes every brave soldier / volunteer that has died protecting those they love from putin's reign of evil.
In the context of the thousands of murders committed by russians Maddy, do you think the free world cares about the 'paper barriers' to forwarding your criminal regime's assets to the victim nation? NOPE. NOPE. NOPE.
Beyond the monetary costs to your nation, your russian country folk must also now carry a crushing millstone of shame for its genocidal intent. It will be a multi generational shame.
As a willing accessory in propagating putin's regime, the putin's soldiers and troll's loads will be heavier. I can say this because those around them, will will know who burdened them with this national shame.
Don't forget to sign "putin troll Maddy" on your valentine's cards this year. Please don't hide your disease. Your country's healing begins with this diagnosis.