Let's talk about Europe without the US, Trump, and a former NATO boss.... - Belle of the Ranch

[TexasTowelie]

Well, howdy there Internet people. It's Belle again. So, today we're going to talk about Europe standing without the US., Trump, and a former NATO boss.

Trump has consistently pushed our European allies over and over and over again. Foreign policy experts warned that if he continued, the US would lose its European allies and its status as a superpower when that happened. Those buying into American exceptionalism and buying the lines of those pedaling nostalgia ignored the warnings.

Even as we saw European nations start distancing from our industrial base and talk about European only nuclear umbrella agreements.

Even when France's president hinted heavily at pushing the US out because it had become a weak liability.

We even saw Europe start working on fleshing out the details of the EU mutual defense pact, but Americans just leaned into normalcy bias and assumed the way things have been is the way they will be.

Even while we watched sign after sign pile up that the systems that made the US a superpower were being destroyed to satisfy the ego of one man.

Now we have another development that shows faith in the US is crumbling even faster.

Former NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmusen said, “what we are witnessing right now is the disintegration of NATO and that is dangerous. President Trump has raised so many doubts about his commitment to Article 5 and to the defense of Europe that there can be only one conclusion for Europeans. We must stand on our own feet and be able to defend our continent ourselves.”

He went on to say that “neither the EU nor NATO are currently suited to strengthen a European pillar within the alliance.” He said a bunch of stuff about Europe needing its own industrial base and new defense plans. He also outlined what he thought would work to build a European coalition of the willing.

For the most part, it's a bunch of things we've already heard from European leaders, military advisers, and foreign policy experts. But here's the big difference. He said, "I still believe that NATO will remain the cornerstone of our defense and the ultimate security guarantee is the American nuclear umbrella." Then went on to add that, "Conventional defense is something we Europeans should be able to provide ourselves."

The reason that's worth noting is because nuclear powers are already looking to get out from under the US umbrella. They don't believe the US nuclear umbrella is worth anything and there's sound logic. If the US won't stand by Article 5 conventionally, in what world would we risk our cities in a nuclear exchange?

But he's pointing to the conventional military and planning as something Europe needs to build up independent of the US. When you take the concerns and comments of influential European voices together, there is no component of US power that isn't being doubted. That's not superpower status. That's relic status.

It's been less than 2 years since Trump's return, and he's weakened the reputation of the United States so much that our allies are wondering if we're even up to the task anymore. His ill-advised elected war with Iran didn't help, but it's also the erratic nature and inept foreign policy.

American citizens need to understand that our power and influence is declining. We have never been weaker and it will take a massive rejection of Trump's failed policies and some serious limits on executive power before we start to climb again.

Anyway, it's just a thought. Y'all have a good day.