Opinion | Being America's friend is fatal
By Tom Fowdy
Henry Kissinger once quoted that: "it may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."
The quirky comment has found renewed relevance throughout the year of 2022, and that isn't without good reason. As Russia's war in Ukraine rages on, European governments are increasingly questioning where exactly this conflict, spurred on by the US and the UK, is leading them.
The prolonging of the conflict has after all, been disastrous from the perspective of European interests. Not just in relation to physical security itself, but also in terms of the disastrous economic impact it has inflicted upon the continent through surging inflation and energy prices.
Yet that is only one aspect of it. As the US rekindled its strategic clout over Europe in the midst of the conflict, it has also both exposed and eroded the autonomy and independence of European states from Washington who has stood as the primary military benefactor of the war. The US has profited existentially from weapons sales, in addition to also greater forcing its will upon NATO when it comes to matters such as China.
And it is because of all the above that in the past couple of months, European leaders have sought to reaffirm their distance from the US and at least marginally, re-engage China. Such efforts have included German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's visit to Beijing, his repeated remarks against "decoupling" and a "new cold war", as well as a visit by President of the European Council Charles Michel. Likewise, in respect to the Ukraine war itself, calls for peace have also grown louder.
Why so? Because even if European leaders can do little about it, the truth has become very much clear that the United States does not truly represent the best interests of the continent, but is rather exploiting it for its own gain. Much can be made of a recent visit to the White House by French President Emmanuel Macron. While this splendid bow-tied dinner was presented by Biden as a show of solidarity and alliance, it held some deep abiding divisions beneath the surface.
The recent US "inflation reduction act"- might be described as a protectionist bonanza. It is born out of the era of "America First", which willingly seeks to cut down and break apart globalization in the view of promoting unfettered US dominance. Washington wants to realign global supply chains in its own favor, while continuing to maintain an iron grip over its allies and isolating competitors such as China and Russia. As such, the inflation reduction act, as per America's semiconductor policies, offers massive subsidies and funding for businesses setting up production in the US.
And who is the biggest loser? The answer is: Europe. The policies implemented by the US are increasingly spurring on a phenomenon known as "de-industrialization", that is whereby industries located in Europe are incentivized to leave the continent and go across the Atlantic to the US, where production is cheaper and support is on offer. The trend has also been driven by surging energy costs in Europe brought about by the Ukraine war, which has hammered the costs of production in export-focused economies such as Germany. While the US is reaping money from selling Europeans increased gas and arms, it is taking away its industry too.
Ironically, when the Biden administration entered office, he brandished the slogan "America is back" and this itself was cheered by European leaders. This was because he replaced the Trump administration which was openly contemptuous and antagonistic to the continent. However, when it comes to the mantra of "America First"- that is undercutting European interests in favor of US ones, little has actually changed, Biden simply does so with a simple and more polite gesture. During the Macron-Biden meeting, the President claimed that he would "adjust" the inflation reduction act in order to help Europe's woes. Such a comment was so jaw-droppingly insincere that it might as well be branded an outright lie.
All in all, continued loyalty and allegiance to the US by Europe are not paying off. They may have justifiably needed American support in the view of confronting Russia, yet arguably America's full strategic intentions for the continent have been less than benign, and came with a happy price. Europe is chained to an America which is only interested in undermining the continent to advance itself, backed by the disastrous Brexit-Britain, and thus European leaders now find themselves scrambling to reassert their own "strategic autonomy"- if for that matter, there ever was such a thing to begin with…
The author is a well-seasoned writer and analyst with a large portfolio related to China topics, especially in the field of politics, international relations and more. He graduated with an Msc. in Chinese Studies from Oxford University in 2018.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.
Read more articles by Tom Fowdy:
Opinion | Two protests, two standards, one hypocrisy
Opinion | Rishi Sunak's China Policy is an incoherent Mess
Opinion | UK U-turn on Wafer Feb puts America first, Britain last
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