“The U.S. positions on Russia Are Not Compatible With Our Own Security Interests”

Norbert Röttgen, member of parliament and foreign policy expert, calls for Europe to urge the United States to comply with international law, while maintaining close ties. This includes continuing to invest in transatlantic relations. His commentary was written in German, read the original here.

With the re-election of Donald Trump as president, the role of the United States in the world — and with it the transatlantic relationship — is shifting at a pace few would have predicted. Under Donald Trump, the security of Europe is no longer an integral part of American interests in the way it was for decades after World War II. This change brings uncomfortable truths and consequential decisions for Europe. We want to continue working with the U.S., but at the same time we must recognize that we are now responsible for our own security.

The truth is that even long before Trump, the U.S. had urged Europeans to do more for their own security and to shoulder a greater share of the burden within NATO. We Europeans often ignored these calls out of convenience. Now we must rapidly become capable of defending ourselves so that we never have to be defended. We must rise to this responsibility because the future of Europe and our free, democratic way of life depends on it.

The recently published U.S. National Security Strategy makes clear how the United States views its role abroad and how it sees Europe. Strategically, the U.S. is focused on maintaining dominance in the Western Hemisphere against external political and economic influence. In this framework, democratic rule-of-law states in Europe are at times seen as part of the problem, while reducing tensions with Russia is cast as a goal in order to achieve a type of strategic stability. In pursuit of that goal, pressure is being applied — especially on Ukraine.

For Europeans, these positions are not compatible with our own security interests. Europe’s security depends on the failure of Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine. Only by preventing Russia from achieving its aims can we stop military force from once again being seen as a legitimate tool of state policy — not just in Europe, but elsewhere, for example as a model for China regarding Taiwan. An end to the war that rewards aggression would not bring peace; it would destabilize Ukraine and further erode the foundations of the European security order.

The authority of international law is non-negotiable for us Europeans. It applies equally to both strong and weak states and is, for many, the most important protection against the predatory actions of militarily stronger neighbors. That is why, in full solidarity, we must also insist that the U.S. uphold international law and must not let it be relativized.

Europe missed the opportunity to put itself in a position where it has the capability to act independently in world affairs. We must make up for that now. This includes continuing to invest in transatlantic relations, which are more than government-to-government ties. They encompass politics, economics, and — above all — the connections between people in the U.S. and Europe that often go back generations and tell the shared and fateful history of our continents. Despite all difficulties, that story is not yet finished.

Norbert Röttgen, Member of the German Bundestag (CDU/CSU), is the deputy parliamentary leader of the Christian Democrats in the German Bundestag. He is also the deputy chairman of Atlantik-Brücke.

To read more on the question of whether the United States is still Europe’s partner, also see the pro comment by Metin Hakverdi, Member of the German Bundestag (SPD), Coordinator for Transatlantic Civil Society, Cultural, and Information Policy Cooperation of the Federal Government at the Federal Foreign Office and board member of Atlantik-Brücke here: “Strategic Decoupling would be damaging for Europe”