Five food for the Munich Security Conference

A series of American statements shook Munich’s security conference last week and caused discord among European politicians who attended.

It is now expected that US and Russian officials meet in Saudi Arabia next week to begin negotiations about the end of war in Ukraine.

However, Ukraine and European politicians have not been invited to attend, despite insisting that they must be involved so that any high fire is credible.

Instead, they will meet in Paris on Monday for an emergency summit to discuss the conflict and security of the continent.

Here are five conclusions from Munich.

NATO, the organization of the North Atlantic Treaty, was formed in 1949 with the main objective of blocking expansion in Europe by the former Soviet Union.

Now, numbering 32 members, including several Eastern European countries, members agree that if one of them is attacked, others should help defend it.

But after this week, the security architecture after World War for Europe no longer exists. America is still in NATO But Europe can no longer automatically trust the US. Uu. To go to their aid.

In Brussels, The Secretary of Defense of the United States, Pete Hegseth, asked NATO European members to spend much more in defense, saying they would have to provide the “overwhelming” participation of military funds for Ukraine.

Europe, everyone agrees, need to quickly increase their defense expense if you have any hope of deterring a recently emboldened Russia.

It is likely that the current minimum required by NATO of 2% of GDP will increase to 3%. Russia currently spends more than double than in defense in percentage terms.

In January, Trump urged NATO European members to spend 5% of their national defense income. NATO general secretary, Mark Rutte, has also urged Member States to increase their defense expenditure.

But Europe as a whole has already surpassed the United States in terms of help to Ukraine. In total, it has allocated € 70 billion ($ 73 billion; £ 58 billion) in financial and humanitarian aid, as well as € 62 billion in military aid. This compares with € 64 billion in military aid from the United States, as well as € 50 billion in financial and humanitarian assignments.

US Vice President. The abrasing attack of JD Vance to Europe’s policies on Friday It was called “bad judgment” and “insulting” by many of the delegates at the Munich Security Conference.

They expected them to assure them that the United States were not abandoning Ukraine.

On the other hand, the majority passed by accusing European governments, including those of the United Kingdom, withdrawing from their values ​​and ignoring voters’ concerns about migration and freedom of expression.

The speech was received by silence in the hall, and then denounced by several politicians at the conference.

But the speech appealed to others on both sides of the Atlantic and Donald Trump called him “brilliant.”

While Munich’s conference was occupied by geopolitics, Donald Trump announced plans to bring a 25% tariff in all imports of steel and aluminum of March.

It was evidence that there are now very obvious divisions between the positions of Washington and Europe on several issues, from commerce to dealing with Russia.

It is a division that the United Kingdom is fighting to unite, with the prime minister Sir Keir Starmer telling journalists that both relationships were important And Great Britain “was not choosing between the United States and the EU.”

But the Trump team message is sometimes contradictory, withdrawing the great pronouncements the day after they have done.