31st Jul 2002
Time for Europe to Go Its Own Way?
I’ve been out of town a couple of days, so I’m late on this, but Nick Denton, who frequently tries to offer a European point of view on American issues (and in this post admits to being a “European nationalist”), offered this interesting “Declaration of European Independence” on Monday that’s worth reading. A couple of excerpts:
First, the US rightly suspects that European multilateralism is a devious way to inhibit its power; it might better respect open rivalry. The aversion to armed conflict is deep within the European psyche; it is time for Europe to exorcise the ghosts of the two world wars. Finally, the US has become complacent and arrogant: a bit of real competition would do it good.
…
People say that Europe doesn’t have the will or resources to build up an independent military, but it doesn’t need to match US military spending. Remember that the majority of US military expenditure goes on expensive toys for spoilt airmen, and bases in the districts of influential congressmen. By starting from scratch, a common European defense force could achieve substantial efficiencies. For a blueprint, just take some of Rumsfeld’s more radical notions, which will never make it through the military-industrial complex in the US. So here’s the plan…
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