Posted on 02/16/2025 4:00:42 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum
MUNICH — When Russia invaded Ukraine three years ago, the United States helped whip Europe into a staunchly unified response. Now U.S. leaders may be splitting Europe into pieces as President Donald Trump seeks to end the war, European leaders and policymakers say.
Vice President JD Vance and other top administration officials made their European debut last week, slashing their way through a continent of allies as they embraced far-right leaders, demanded access to mineral wealth and offered sympathy to the views of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
By the end of the week, European leaders found themselves potentially cut out of peace talks with Russia, facing down a trade war with Washington and scrambling to answer U.S. requests about how many troops they can marshal to Ukraine to guarantee a truce negotiated without their input.
Europeans already had four years of a Trump presidency. But many policymakers say that this time feels different, with four head-snapping weeks of Trump already recasting the attitudes of leaders who had vowed to make the best of his new term in office.
“The view was a little bit more optimistic” just four weeks ago as Trump entered office, Finnish President Alexander Stubb told reporters Saturday.
“Of course, the developments that we’ve seen in the past few days give us a little bit more pause for pessimism. But as I’ve always said, pessimism is usually inaction. Optimism is action, and realism is a solution,” he continued. “So let’s be realistic and try to look at a good pathway forward.”
Many Europeans are looking at the situation “with nervousness, frustration and even alarm,” said Jeffrey Rathke, the president of the American-German Institute at Johns Hopkins University and a former U.S. diplomat...
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
WWII and the cold war are over.
Hell, we divided it in 1775!
US Dollars hold Europe together. Whether legitimate monies or the graft and corruption discovered in USAID, it was the US TAXPAYER MONEY.
Now that the money is challenged, the back biting has already begun.
Europe needs to stand on their own. The US taxpayers are done with filling your slop trough with our labor and resources.
Get over it.
The EU, EU, EU; should be united. Because they are the EU. They should unite together to help one another out. Like a European Union, or something.
It’s long past time to let Europe be responsible for Europe.
Europe was already divided
Anyone who treated Obama like a celebrity is not going to like President Trump
They’re getting let loose. They’ll scream like the spoiled ingrates that they are
MEGA!
I wasn’t aware that the job of the United States was to unite Europe. Did I miss something in history class?
This is what happens when you don’t provide for your own defense and just freeload off of somebody else to do it for you for over 30 years. Nobody takes you seriously. You don’t even get a seat at the table.
You want respect? Earn it. Provide for your own defense. Show everybody that you’re an adult country that means business if anybody screws with you.
Europe is a continent in a constant state of war. Better for us to stay out of it.
Thomas Jefferson
True then.
True now.
Bitch… bitch… bitch… what the hell has Europe been doing over the last three years? We’ve just proved how lazy and ineffective Europe is. No wonder they always need our help.
Yup.
I’m in Bangkok and have met many others from the west.
They all are cheering for Trump and want the freedom and sanity that we are pursuing.
I was born and spent much of my youth in Sweden. Late 70s early 80s Europe was utopia. Not so much anymore and it weighs on my heart what happened to my nation of origin.
I do suspect that like Thatcher, Trump is going to have global coattails. And wait til foreigners find out how the left here meddled in their elections!
I was just watching Scholz in Germany saying they can’t cut any other spending to help Ukraine, and they are struggling to spend 2% on defense.
These bums have the nerve to do nothing for their own defense, while crying about the United States.
Meanwhile their elitist weakness is what got Ukraine invaded in the first place.
How much are they spending on all their refugees?
Yeah, President Trump is not letting the tail wag the dog. Know your place Europe.
It’s not America that has changed, it’s Europe. Europe has to decide what kind of society it wants to be, and then act on it.
CC
Wahhhh; butthjrt much Europe? Embrace M_GA and change for the better and lose the simp.
It is really a thing to behold. The legacy media reports to an alternate America and expects normal American to react with gasps.
Federal workers are nervous and scared!!!
Europe is on edge at new U.S. policy.
Canada is booing our national anthem.
Musk might possibly maybe have access to your social security number.
Don’t know about anyone else, but my response has either been been “awesome!!!” or “who gives a crap.”
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.