EUROPE
šŖšŗš®š±šµšø Europeās power outage: How Israel-Hamas war exposed EUās irrelevance
Of the myriad geostrategic illusions that have been destroyed in recent days, the most sobering realization for anyone residing on the Continent should be this: No one cares what Europe thinks. Across an array of global flashpoints, from Nagorno-Karabakh to Kosovo to Israel, Europe has been relegated to the role of a well-meaning NGO, whose humanitarian contributions are welcomed, but is otherwise ignored.Ā
The 27-member bloc has always struggled to articulate a coherent foreign policy, given the diverse national interests at play. Even so, it still mattered, mainly due to the size of its market. The EUās global influence is waning, however, amid the secular decline of its economy and its inability to project military might at a time of growing global instability.Ā
Instead of the āgeopoliticalā powerhouse Commission President Ursula von der Leyen promised when she took office in 2019, the EU has devolved into a pan-Europeanminnow, offering a degree of bemusement to the real players at the top table, while mostly just embarrassing itself amid its cacophony of contradictions.Ā
To sum up: Over the course of just 24 hours, the Commission went from announcing it would suspend all aid to the Palestinians to signaling it would increase the flow of funds.Ā
The EUās response to the events on the ground in Israel was no less confused. Even as Israel was still counting the bodies from the most horrific massacre in the Jewish stateās history, Borrell, a longtime critic of the country who has effectively been declared persona non grata there, resorted to bothsidesing.Ā
Borrell, a Spanish socialist, condemned Hamasā ābarbaric and terrorist attack,ā while also chiding Israel for its blockade of Gaza and highlighting the āsufferingā of the Palestinians who voted Hamas into power.Ā
Compare that with the messaging from Washington.Ā
āIn this moment, we must be crystal clear,ā U.S. President Joe Biden said in aĀ special White House addressĀ Tuesday. āWe stand with Israel. We stand with Israel. And we will make sure Israel has what it needs to take care of its citizens, defend itself, and respond to this attack.ā
Biden noted that heād called France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom to discuss the crisis. Notably not on the list: any of the EUās āleaders.āĀ
š https://www.politico.eu/article/israel-hamas-war-europe-eu-power-irrelevance/
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š®š·ššŗšø Iran Is a Bigger Defeat Than Vietnam | Foreign Policy
At his second inaugural, U.S. President Donald Trump pronounced his hope āthat our recent presidential election will be remembered as the greatest and most consequential election in the history of our country.ā By losing his Gulf war, Trump has achieved that goal. His choice to launch a campaign against Iran was encouraged by others, but fully his own. It has led to a reversal that marks a strategic calamity far greater than the U.S. defeat in the Vietnam War.
Defeat in the Iranian war looks, on the surface, nothing like other U.S. military defeats. The speed of the war and its remoteness have lent an air of unreality to the whole endeavor. The White House has not been burned, as it was in 1814; there have not been protests against a nonexistent draft. The absence of substantial U.S. casualties in this conflict also masks the scale of the U.S. defeat. To be sure, the war has been deadly: Thousands of Iranians, ...
According to The Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump reviewed military options for a full-scale war against Iran to āfinish the job,ā but has decided, for now, not to move forward.
The report says Trump is concerned that renewed military conflict could hurt the chances of a diplomatic resolution and of dismantling Iranās nuclear program, and that heās shown willingness to let indirect talks in Qatar run past the August 18 deadline. He is said to be fine with continuing limited strikes on Iranian targets if Tehran violates the current temporary deal - as it already has, repeatedly.
How are those negotiations going?
Not well. It seems JD Vanceās āhistoricā face-to-face achievement was a one-off. Washington has been quietly downgraded from talking to the Great Satan to negotiating with the Little Satan instead - a senior Qatari official confirmed that U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Qatari officials in Doha, but there are currently no high-level U.S.-Iran meetings ...