Outlook Is Grim As Europe Scrambles To Face Russia Alone

Minus the US defence umbrella, it is doubtful the Europeans will be able to muster the resources to defend Ukraine against an emboldened Moscow.

- Jonathan Eyal

The Munich Security Conference, Europe's top yearly get-together, has produced two dates that will remain forever etched in the continent's history.

The first date came in 2007, when Russia's President Vladimir Putin, invited to address the conference, stunned the audience with a stridently aggressive speech in which he foreshadowed the Russian invasion of Georgia and Ukraine, as well as the broader showdown now unfolding between his country and the West.

The second shock was at this year's conference, when US Vice-President J.D. Vance told the assembled heads of states and governments on Feb 14 that their great American ally no longer shares the same values or the same security priorities with Europe.

"In Washington, there is a new sheriff in town," warned Mr Vance before launching into a virulent diatribe against European nations, accusing them of stifling freedom of expression and religious freedom.

Nor did Mr Vance's blow come in isolation, for just two days before he spoke in Munich, President Donald Trump announced that he and Russia's President Vladimir Putin had agreed to talk about ending the Ukraine war over the heads of both Ukraine and all European governments.

And if this is not enough, US Defence Secretary Peter Hegseth summarily told the Europeans that whatever Messrs Trump and Putin agreed, it would be up to the Europeans to police the borders of Ukraine without US support and US security guarantees. Indeed - Mr Hegseth added, just in case he was misunderstood - America is no longer the "primary guarantor" of European security.