Our Alliance With Europe Is Imperfect – But Invaluable

Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s speech to the Munich Security Council on the continued necessity of the transatlantic alliance has won him plaudits from across the spectrum – and rightly so. With Western values of democracy and the rule of law under assault from multiple directions, this Administration is reaffirming the enduring values that unite America and our democratic partners in Europe, while also delivering some tough love to our European allies.

This message couldn’t be more timely – and it’s one that both Europeans and Americans would do well to heed. Recent decades have seen a rootless, nihilistic spirit take hold of much of the political culture of the West. Instead of exercising responsible stewardship of the political and cultural institutions that have made this era of extraordinary freedom and prosperity possible, voices on both the Right and the Left are denigrating those achievements. Faith in God has been replaced by the cults of social justice or “climate science.” Up until the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Europe’s investment in its own defense was woefully inadequate. And instead of recognizing how much we have to fight for, there are those who would rather side with our adversaries – arguing that we should align with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, or exalting terrorist groups like Hamas as freedom fighters.

But it’s not enough to simply diagnose the problem; we need to believe that the West is worth fighting for and articulate a plan to do just that. That means protecting core values like freedom of speech that have made all of this possible. We must also confront the damage wrought by out-of-control spending, welfare statism, anti-energy environmental policies, and uncontrolled migration that have left us vulnerable to destruction from within and without. Meanwhile, our adversaries are doing everything in their power to exploit our weaknesses – self-imposed or otherwise.

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine did what decades of American pleading couldn’t accomplish – it woke Europe up to the threat on its doorstep. Today, NATO is more unified on the Russian threat than at any time since the Cold War. Germany is finally coming to terms with the fact that relying on Russian energy was a catastrophic mistake, and Poland is emerging as a serious military power – real improvements that America has long wanted to see. The “tough love” approach that President Trump has taken toward Europe has strengthened the transatlantic relationship and our capacity to address shared challenges: For example, his willingness to insist that our NATO allies meet their defense spending obligations resulted in significant increases during his first term, and the continuation of that approach in his second term has seen the spending target rise to 5%. That has put both the United States and Europe in a much healthier position to reestablish the deterrence lost with Putin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

But there is still so much work to be done. Russia’s war of aggression shows no sign of abating. China is on the move. Iran remains a menace. There are troubling signs of resurgent Islamist extremism, with ISIS-offshoots finding ready recruits among unassimilated migrant populations across the West. And major Western countries (America included) face catastrophe if we don’t reform the entitlement systems that have set us on a track to insolvency. 

More importantly, Europe must wake up to the key battle over energy that is facing them. Europe should set aside “net zero” because it will cripple the West in competing with China, which never adopted net zero and has absolutely no intention of abiding by environmental regulations that constrain its growth. America is showing the way once again and returning to energy dominance under President Trump; Europe should follow suit.

Our allies on the Continent should also stop hampering the advancement of technology and AI. Again, China is pursuing this full speed ahead, making it critical for the West to work together to win the technology war – or risk ceding the next century to Beijing.

Winston Churchill once said, “There is only one thing worse than fighting with allies, and that is fighting without them.” Whether it’s the challenge from China and its authoritarian axis, or the uncertainties of the AI revolution, or our looming fiscal and population crises, we cannot face these challenges and threats alone. History shows what happens when America retreats and Europe goes it alone – and the results aren’t pretty. We cannot secure a better future if we refuse to learn those lessons.