The dream of an EU alternative to U.S. protection is just that. NATO remains as essential as ever.
As NATO allies gather near London this week, existential questions hover in the air above the swanky Grove Hotel: How long will we be around as an alliance? Do we still look united enough to deter aggressors? And can a “European army” spring up to supplement, perhaps even replace, our transatlantic league?
The short answer to that last question is no. Tragically, there won’t be a European army soon, or ever. European leaders should admit that honestly, and all members the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, above all the Americans, should accept that they’d better do their level best to dispel doubts about the alliance. The reality is that, for the foreseeable future, NATO is the only credible military shield Europe has.
The main culprit for this new anxiety is of course U.S. President Donald Trump, whose “transactional” attitude toward NATO has spooked Europeans. He’s right to criticize cheapskates such as Germany for skimping on their military spending. But he’s irresponsible to imply that America’s commitment to Article 5 — which states that an attack against one member state is an attack against all — may be conditional. The main purpose of alliances is deterrence, and that requires unconditional assurances.
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WNU Editor: The above commentary and analysis is spot on. And if there is a European Army one day, it will be small and limited.
2 comments:
The author says Trump is "irresponsible to imply that America’s commitment to Article 5 is conditional." Maybe. But how about criticizing the irresponsibility of previous administrations for allowing the expenditure gap that now exists between the US and the various Euro member nations? Trump HAS to somehow light a fire under these slackards in order to correct an imbalance that he had nothing to do with creating. It's not a pretty thing to watch, but absolutely necessary.
The expenditure gap was okay with past American Presidents who perhaps viewed NATO as a means of intimidating, the perennial enemy Russia, through expansion of its membership and ultimately with Ukraine being a potential key player.
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