Does NATO survive without the USA? The answer will be surprising
Does NATO survive without the USA? The answer will be surprising
in Seoul, South Korea, has changed the reality in front of Europe. The previously reliable backing of the United States within NATO, which has guaranteed the continent security for almost 80 years, is no longer guaranteed.
a new age for NATO?
NATO: stronger than the USA?
NATO without the USA is not defenseless. Over a million soldiers and modern weapon systems from the 31 other member states are available. Analysts draw attention to the fact that Europe also has the necessary assets and technological knowledge to defend themselves.
European defense ability
If European countries work together and procure the right armor, Europe could "represent a serious conventional and ... nuclear deterrent potential" to Russia, explained Ben Schreer, European Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IIS), in a virtual call with CNN at the end of February.
"Europe alone (still) has the capacity to mobilize the necessary resources for self -defense. It is only a matter of readiness," said Schreer.
The turning point of transatlantic solidarity
In the past 75 years, the United States has been the decisive band that NATO held together. The cold war, the missions in the Balkan countries of the 1990s and the support of Ukraine by Washington until the second term of office have strengthened this alliance. However, analysts warn that this transatlantic solidarity may have come to a standstill in the past few days.
Trump's heated debate with the Ukrainian President Selenskyj, according to which he US Stop , could be treated as a deeper with both Ukraine and the “free world” in the sense of the US strategy, said Dan Fried, Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council.
European reality
A troubling tendency among European leaders shows that some are already considering to consider Washington "in a way as an enemy in a way. John Lough, a former NATO official, sees the relationship between the USA and Europe at a turning point. "The United States seems to respect Europe more than competitors than allies," he said to CNN.
However, some analysts believe that a NATO alliance without the USA would not necessarily be negative. "As soon as US allies are convinced that they can no longer rely on the US skills, they will expand their own capacities," said Moritz Graefrath, a postdoc at the Global Research Institute of William & Mary.
Europe's military strengths
The idea of a European military power is not absurd. After the United States, Turkey is the largest force in NATO with 355,200 active military members. Other large NATO countries such as France (202.200), Germany (179,850) and Poland (164,100) follow. These countries have weapons that are often superior or with which Russia are comparable.
European NATO countries can drive up powerful marching aircraft, such as the jointly developed franco-british scalp/storm shadow , which have already proven themselves on the Ukrainian battlefield.
The future of NATO and the USA
Some hope that the discussion about a US troop deduction from NATO is only part of Trump's strategy in order to make his allies to spend more for defense. This situation is reminiscent of Trump's first term when he thought about a possible troop deduction from South Korea.
Analysts agree: If Trump does not achieve the desired result from his negotiations with Putin, a continuation of the NATO operations could also be possible. "If Putin goes too far, Trump could even recognize that," summed up Schreer.
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