About Ascendancy of the Right & Europe’s State of Denial:
1. Irony in Global Diplomacy
- The contradictions in global politics have been highlighted in the recent Munich Security Conference and UNGA vote on Ukraine.
- It has been U.S.-Russia bilateral talks in Saudi Arabia, which excluded Ukraine and Europe from the agenda.
- The June ’24 peace summit in Switzerland was also excluded from Russian invitation.
2. U.S. Criticism of Europe
- When there is supposed to be a right-wing party, Vice-President J.D. Vance of the United States accused Europe of suppressing them and failing to control migration.
- There are annulments due to far-right wins like in Romania, where Calin Georgescu’s victory was overturned.
3. U.S. Contradictions Related to Ukraine War
- While the U.S. has spent $110 billion in aid to Ukraine, it whines about Europe’s role in the prolonging of the war.
- Arms to be supplied by Germany under pressure despite the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in 2022 are a case in point. U.S. now “hands-on-no-no” urges Europe to be more proactive in NATO and security.
4. Europe’s Denial of Domestic Problems
- Radicals like the LTTE and Khalistani separatists and some Islamic extremists are making use of the freedom offered by Europe to its people.
- That these radicals committed their acts of incitement are proven by frequent terror attacks in the major cities (like Paris, Madrid, Brussels, etc.) which only attest to dereliction of duties by the security forces.
5. U.S. and Europe’s Selective Democratic Values
- Diplomatic credit went to S. Jaishankar, who chastised the rich western nations for paying lip service to democracy in their countries while fostering non-democratic forces abroad.
- Such examples include: 1. Taliban rise to power in Afghanistan, 2021; 2. Syrian President overthrown in 2024 by an ex-Al-Qaeda leader.
6. Ukraine War and Trans-Atlantic Rift
- The U.S. voted with Russia at UNGA regarding the Ukraine armed conflict and lost touch with the European stance thereon.
- In fact, Europe cannot indefinitely wage war without U.S. support.
7. Future of U.S.-Europe Relations
- But the U.S. would not drop Europe and attempt to impose on Europe better terms for the partnership.
- Centered leadership in Germany could take Europe towards such a reset of policy.
- In fact, the Russia-China alliance now makes the cooperation of the U.S. with Europe even more crucial.
8. Gandhi’s Irony on Western Civilization
- When asked about Western civilization, Mahatma Gandhi supposedly said at the time: “I think it would be a good idea.”
- It portrays Europe’s dilemma between liberal values and the security imperatives in reality.
