Can the United States and Europe “rebuild relations” after the US elections? The American: United States is not reliable
Haiwaiwang, November 10th. Over the past four years, due to the Trump administration’s “America First” policy, the United States and its European allies have become increasingly divided. The U.S. election seems to make people see that the new government may embrace multilateralism again and even “rebuild the old good” with the EU. Is this really true?
Tom McTague, editor of The Atlantic Monthly in London, wrote on the 8th that the serious problems caused by the role of the United States in the world will not disappear due to the defeat of the Trump administration. “It is not reliable. Trump, but America itself.”
“Trumpism” still exists
“‘Seeing hope’ is the mainstream thinking of most countries for this US election. The Paris Agreement, the Iranian Nuclear Agreement, and even the weakened concept of multilateralism can be revived.”
The article started by pointing out that for those who believe For those who can see hope, the emergence of a new government is obviously an important moment. However, the end of the general election also leaves people with an inescapable fear that the world has not yet seen the last side of the Trump administration.
“The Trump administration’s performance in the pandemic and the global economic recession mean that ‘Trumpism’ still persists.” The article stated that world leaders believe that Trump is not the appearance of relations between the United States and the world.
The root cause of structural problems. On the eve of the US election, the author of the article had conversations with dozens of officials in the United States and Europe. The results also showed that almost everyone admitted that the serious problems caused by the role of the United States in the world will not disappear just because of the election.
The article believes that in the past four years, Berlin, Paris, Brussels, and London have formed a kind of “memory” that not only cooperates with the United States, but also fights against issues such as climate change and trade. American allies have even learned how to continue to operate in the space left by Washington’s “indifference.”
The United States may have played the role of “mediator” or “savior,” but now it often shows absence, destruction, or lack of clarity about its goals and commitments. The new government may soon enter the White House, but the outside world’s confidence in “any US decision is safe” is almost gone.
The “austerity policy” has already begun
Another point that the author of the article has drawn from conversations with European officials is that although the US “austerity policy” has been strengthened during the Trump administration, it actually started under the Obama administration. Therefore, there is an analysis that may become a consensus (in Europe) that “it is not Trump that cannot be relied on, but the United States itself.”
In this regard, the article cited a few examples. French President Macron said in an interview with The Economist in 2019 that Europe needs to understand that the world has changed. “It’s totally unimaginable that the American allies turned their backs on strategic issues so quickly.” Macron also said bluntly that this deterioration of the situation began during Obama’s administration, and Obama failed to intervene in Syria’s use of chemical weapons. The first stage of the collapse of the Western bloc”. For this reason, European defense, security and economic sovereignty issues need to be reconsidered.
The article further pointed out that for the French who have long sought to rebuild their lost global influence through the European Union, the US withdrawal is not a threat, but an opportunity. For Obama, he has his own considerations. The article noted that Obama also made a lot of tough remarks against Europe in the last year of his term in an interview with The Atlantic, such as criticizing Europe’s “free-riding” behavior and warning that the United Kingdom will stop if it does not promise to increase defense spending. Recognizing the “special relationship” between the United States and Britain, he also asked Europe to step up to assume more global leadership responsibilities.
U.S. commitments to Europe are disintegrating
In fact, if the Democrats regain power in the White House, there are still many uncertainties in the direction of US-EU relations. The article mentioned that France and the United Kingdom also have special political worries about Democrats, because they have shown their favor to the Trump administration. A former French diplomat revealed that in view of the fact that the French leader supports Europe’s strategic autonomy from the United States and has severely criticized Obama, Macron is worried that he will not be welcomed by the new government. The efforts of the United Kingdom to promote a trade agreement with the United States have also made British officials worry that their relationship with the Trump administration is too close.
At the same time, the end of the general election also brought a problem for Democrats. In the past four years, many European countries have been waiting for the U.S. election. These countries have allowed many international treaties to survive, hoping that the Democratic president of the United States can bring them new vitality. Given that the Democratic Party only won a small victory in this election, are other countries waiting for the Republican Party to return?
“The lesson of Germany in the past 12 years is clear: No matter who is in power in the White House, the United States is staying away from Europe.” The author of the article quoted two senior European officials as saying that, on the one hand, although the Trump administration has not successfully implemented much “austerity policies” “But his message is clear that the United States is leaving Europe; on the other hand, Germany and other EU countries believe that Europe needs to do more for its own defense. It can be said that there is a consensus within Europe that the U.S. commitment is disintegrating.
“In view of the domestic division and economic downturn, can the United States continue to maintain its status as a’security guarantor’ for Europe and other regions?” The article believes that from the performance of Trump during his tenure, the answer is obvious. “When Britain and Brussels were fighting for Brexit, the British noticed with some pain that the Americans had disappeared, and in the past few years, the United States is likely to become a mediator.” For many American allies, there is little sign of it. , How far the new government wants to change for the whole world.
