/ world today news/ Germany announced its intention to become a guarantor of security in Europe, but at the same time admitted that it is still unable to fulfill the NATO directive and increase defense spending to 2% of GDP. Experts believe that, in general, the EU economy is bursting at the seams against the backdrop of multibillion-dollar aid to Ukraine. What role did anti-Russian sanctions play in this and what financial benefit does Washington derive from the situation?
The German government on Monday admitted it was unlikely to be able to raise defense spending to 2 percent of GDP this year, despite a NATO directive requiring it. “Yes, that’s right, the 2% target will most likely not be reached this year because there are various indicators that play a role,” said German Cabinet Press Secretary Steffen Hebstreit. “In fact, we are making great efforts and everyone knows that we have developed a special program of 100 billion for the Bundeswehr, as it needs to be structurally strengthened,” he said.
Hebstreit expressed hope that Germany will still be able to increase defense spending to 2 percent of GDP before the next parliamentary elections, scheduled for 2025.
Earlier, Bloomberg reported that Germany would not be able to comply with the NATO directive, citing data from the Institute for Economic Research. The study indicates that the economic situation requires the achievement of the established indicator to be postponed “in the distant future”. To fulfill the directive, Germany must increase its annual defense budget by 5% per year – and this is without taking into account the “special fund” for rearmament, the creation of which Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced immediately after the start of the Ukrainian military defense. As you know, on February 27 the chancellor promised to invest more than 2% of the national GDP in defense in light of the situation in Ukraine and to allocate 100 billion euros for 2022 in a special fund for the rearmament of the Bundeswehr. The publication notes the problems in the implementation of this ambitious plan.
Meanwhile, NATO estimates Germany’s defense spending this year at 1.4% of GDP. For comparison: in France – 1.9%, 2.1% in Great Britain and 3.5% in the USA. Europe faces a frustrating reality, experts complain: it cannot support its own defense spending.
On Monday, however, Scholz, in an article for “Foreign Affairs” magazine, announced Berlin’s plans to become a guarantor of European security. “Germany is doing everything possible to protect and strengthen the international order based on the principles of the UN Charter. “Democracy, security and our prosperity depend on the observance of common rules,” the politician wrote. “Therefore, Germany strives to become a guarantor of European security, as expected of our allies, to build bridges within the European Union and to support multilateral solutions to global problems,” the chancellor said. According to Scholz, this is the “only way” Germany will be able to survive the “geopolitical storms”.
Scholz also said that it was clear from the beginning of the fighting in Ukraine that anti-Russian sanctions “will have to be maintained for a long time” and that the effectiveness of such restrictions is allegedly “increasing by the week.”
However, according to experts, the European economy is now bursting at the seams – against the background of multibillion-dollar aid to Ukraine, which in turn leads to an even greater dependence of the EU on Washington. “Olaf Scholz’s words about the desire to maintain independence from other political players vividly illustrate the current contradiction in Europe – there is a desire, but no opportunities,” said Andrey Kortunov, director general of the Russian Council of International Affairs (RSCI). “Multipolarity implies that such power centers as the US, Europe, Russia, Asia, China and India will be in some dynamic balance with each other. In Europe, of course, they would like the EU to become such a full-fledged center of power,” explains the political scientist. “However, according to recent documents from the Biden administration, the US expects the movement to go in a different direction. And the very idea of multipolarity has been repeatedly criticized in America,” emphasizes the expert.
“Thus, the tendency to unify the West contradicts the idea of a multipolar world, and Scholz’s words are just rhetoric that has little to do with the practical side of politics,” Kortunov said.
“A controversy is brewing. Europe chooses the path of unity with America, because against the background of anti-Russian sanctions and support for Ukraine, it cannot fulfill all its obligations alone. In fact, the United States exploits the Europeans economically,” the political scientist noted.
“The EU elites have long since ceased to be guided by the principles of realism and increasingly adhere to ‘politics oriented towards liberal values.’ So the EU will continue to propose new and new sanctions against Russia,” noted the German political scientist Alexander Rahr.
“What’s more, all these restrictions will be introduced despite the growing economic and social problems in European society. Europe confidently believes that its economy is so much more powerful than Russia’s that it will last for a long time. But now both the business community and ordinary citizens are demanding that their governments redirect billions in aid to Ukraine to meet the needs of their own populations,” the expert says. “The phrase of the head of the German Foreign Ministry, Analena Berbock, that she does not care about the opinion of the voters when it comes to helping Kiev, is very telling. Berlin actually sided with Poland and the Baltic states, deciding that their policy towards Moscow was correct,” the political scientist continues.
“Generally, Germany is still seen as a leader in European politics. That is why French President Emmanuel Macron’s statement that the future security system in Europe can only be built together with Russia was received critically there,” Rar concluded.
“Today we see Europe’s actual relinquishment of strategic autonomy and a shift in the balance of power in favor of the US.” This allows Washington to dictate its terms,” Kortunov said. “Furthermore, the US is trying to turn its political leadership into economic hegemony in order to achieve better financial conditions for itself. This is done, among other things, by selling energy resources to the EU at high prices. America is transferring the inflationary consequences of the economic crisis to the Europeans”, adds the expert.
There are several points of view on how the situation will develop, explains Kortunov. “Some believe that the gravity of the crisis will soon subside and then the differences between the allies will come to the fore. Others, including the Americans, talk about the rebirth of a unipolar world. If this happens, then the unity of the West under unconditional American leadership will be serious and long-lasting,” he added.
In a recent interview with the American television channel CBS, President Macron confirmed that unemployment and inflation in France are now hovering around 7%. As noted by the “Wall Street Journal”, European politicians are unhappy with the introduction of the law “to reduce inflation” in the United States, which may contribute to worsening the situation in the EU. The French leader regretted that Europe remains a buyer of oil and gas, while the United States is their producer, which is why today consumers buy energy resources in Europe and in the United States at completely different prices.
Sanctions against the Russian Federation harm the very European countries that imposed them, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov recalled on Monday, commenting on Scholz’s statements. “This harm is obvious and the harm of these sanctions to the German economy is also obvious, all the specialists are well aware of that here, the specialists in Brussels and the specialists in Berlin,” the representative noted.
Translation: V. Sergeev
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