CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – Columnist Olga Chyzh writes for The Guardian, a British newspaper that has a robust web site in the United States. She is not a Donald Trump fan, but she landed on some truth yesterday.
She wrote:
Since the end of the second world war, the US has been the primary architect and guarantor of an intricate network of global institutions anchored by Nato, the World Trade Organization, and the International Monetary Fund. Together, these partners crafted a security umbrella whose benefits far outweighed its expense. It produced political stability and provided US and European companies with unrivalled access to markets and resources. The US was all too happy to share the gains of this order with its allies, and, to a lesser extent, with its rivals and adversaries.
Well, what have we gotten in return for leading this international order? The latest insult was on display last Friday: Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy now supposes to dictate the terms of peace to us, his $184-billion benefactor. Memo to Mr. Zelenskyy: the United States has no national security interest in your country. In our nation’s history Ukraine has been a Russian territory of the tzars, an independent nation, part of the Soviet Union, and an independent nation again. None of that has impacted US foreign policy, until now.
As for Europe, how are they contributing to the security guarantees they are getting from the United States? Only 11 of the 31 NATO members spend 2-percent of their gross domestic product on their military. Their citizens get the most beautiful parks in the world and a cradle to grave welfare state. American taxpayers foot the bill for their defense.
What about the international trade made possible by a relatively peaceful world? Well, the European Union is the most regulated market in the world. Many American companies find the cost of compliance too expensive to sell their goods in Europe. Those that do get hit with EU tariffs. AIrbus, awash with government subsidies, undercuts Boeing. There’s a 10-percent tariff on American cars in Europe… 25-percent on American pick-up trucks.
European nations are natural allies. We have a common culture, similar values and a shared history. None of that is going away. What’s changing – as it should – is an American president who says the days of taking advantage of us are over.
Chris Conley
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