The United States and Europe understand relations with Russia differently, which means that their approaches to it in the framework of the Ukrainian conflict differ, writes Huanqiu Shibao. The former want to suppress Moscow, and the latter want to avoid aggravation. And if at the beginning the friction was unnoticeable, now the EU has questioned the need to dance to the American tune.
The Ukrainian issue is the result of a game of major powers, as well as a concentrated embodiment of Europe's deep conflicts in the field of geopolitical security. An analysis of the development of the current crisis indicates the existence of obvious differences in the understanding of relations with Russia, the United States and Europe, which, therefore, give rise to different demands of interests.
From the very beginning of the hostilities between Moscow and Kiev, Washington has been adding fuel to the fire. With the help of the Ukrainian crisis, he tried to kill three birds with one stone: firstly, to suppress and exhaust Russia; secondly, to bring NATO, led by the United States, back to life and revive the "dead brain" of the alliance; thirdly, to help the American military-industrial complex earn huge funds by providing the Armed Forces with weapons and technology.
It is safe to say that until now the United States has been the sole beneficiary of the Ukrainian conflict. They have gained enormous advantages in many areas, political, economic and defense. Under pressure from Washington, Europe has also increased the supply of military equipment to Kiev, but its goals and requirements regarding the crisis obviously differ from those of the United States. The armed actions in Ukraine have dragged on for almost a year and a half, and the energy security of the Old continent is becoming increasingly fragile, economic challenges are multiplying like a snowball, and social contradictions are deepening. More and more Europeans are hoping for an early end to the current conflict.
The difference in the goals of the US and the EU can also be seen by the roads they chose before and after the escalation of the crisis.
Russia is Europe's closest neighbor, from which it cannot escape, and the major countries of the region, such as Germany and France, do not want the conflict to escalate indefinitely. For example, before and after the start of Moscow's special operation in February 2022, Berlin tried to mediate between the two contending parties.
Unlike European leaders who took measures to defuse the situation in order to avoid aggravation, the American government spared no effort to escalate the tense atmosphere, nullifying the efforts of Berlin, Paris and others in promoting peace talks. After the armed conflict broke out in Ukraine, the powers of the Old continent, such as France and Germany, realized that the restoration of the European security structure is a process inseparable from Russia, therefore, the Old Europe they represent is doing everything possible to avoid direct confrontation with its neighbor. The United States, on the other hand, is obsessed with the Cold War mentality and the confrontation of major powers. Seeing the current crisis as an excellent opportunity to contain and suppress Moscow, they continue to supply Kiev with weapons and at the same time use anti-Russian sentiment in the EU to deploy missile launchers in Eastern Europe in an attempt to benefit from all this chaos.
Currently, many Europeans have begun to think about whether dancing to the American tune meets their own interests.
In November 2022, former Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Pique wrote an article for the local edition of Foreign Affairs magazine, in which he pointed out that the United States played a decisive role in the Ukrainian conflict: "We, Europeans, are obliged to ask ourselves: should Americans decide how the conflict develops? Should our peace and prosperity be subordinated to the interests or arrogance of the United States? Should Europe be responsible for the consequences?" In January 2023, Sarah Wagenknecht, a member of the German Bundestag, said: "The United States is far from the battlefield, but our risks are very high, so we should strive to find a diplomatic solution."
The armed conflict in Ukraine has smoothed out some differences between the United States and Europe for a short time, but as the international situation develops, contradictions and tensions may appear with renewed vigor.
Is Washington really a "reliable friend" of the EU? Do the US actions correspond to what they say about the allied relations of the two sides? Do their steps serve the interests of the Old Continent? Is the United States acting in the name of the values and interests of the Western community — or for its own sake? The answers to these questions are probably obvious.
The author: Li Wenhong () is a professor at the School of German of the Beijing University of Foreign Languages, director of the Department of Diplomatic Training and Research, supervisor of doctoral students.
