The War in Iran Was a Test for Europe. It Failed.
We pay for Europe's defense—yet Europe is denying us the barest minimum of assistance to fight a battle that benefits them, insisting on sneering at us while freeloading off our generosity.
The New York Times came in for some deserved mockery over a recent headline that misstated what “NATO” stands for. “A North American Treaty Organization Without America?” the headline snarkily read.
Of course, NATO stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
All journalists make mistakes—including very embarrassing ones like this one. But what made this gaffe so uniquely worthy of derision wasn’t just how many editors it made it past at the vaunted New York Times. It was the way it sneered down at the United States from atop that mountain of ignorance. In so doing, it replicated the exact problem with NATO right now: It is the “American Treaty Organization” insofar as we fund it—yet Europe insists on sneering at us while freeloading off our generosity, even when we’re fighting its battles. European leaders have now gone so far as denying our military planes access to their air bases to refuel—even as they blame America for cooling relations.
The New York Times piece (now with a corrected online headline) lambasted President Trump (surprise surprise) for “undermining NATO with his repeated threats to pull out of it.” The piece cites sourcing calling the U.S. “part of the problem of world disorder,” and it cites a former NATO ambassador lamenting the poor Europeans who can now no longer rely on the U.S. to fight their battles: “It’s hard to see how any European country will now be able and willing to trust the United States to come to its defense.”
Are you kidding me? Europe can’t trust the U.S.? It’s Europe who is currently hanging us out to dry, all but rooting for Iran to win because, like Iran, Europe’s feckless leaders are at war with Trump.
The absolute chutzpah on display here is staggering: Europe is whining about not being able to rely on the U.S. at the very moment Europe is demonstrating that the U.S. can’t rely on them, depriving us of its assistance in a battle against a global enemy of the West—which includes Europe, though they seem to have forgotten it.
“If you create daily doubt about your commitment, you hollow it out,” French President Emmanuel Macron said about Trump in Seoul on Thursday—the same Emmanuel Macron who is currently denying the use of France’s airspace to U.S. military jets. France is refusing to join the effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz—even though it is Europe’s oil that is stuck there (the U.S. is a net exporter of gas and oil). Rather than providing assistance, Macron “is calling on medium-sized powers to join forces and stand up to the U.S.”
Do you think that might be seen as “hollowing out” France’s commitment to us, Mr. Macron?
Of course not: The commitment only goes one way. The U.S. is supposed to give, and Europe is supposed to take. We don’t get any oil from Hormuz—but we are supposed to open it alone for the benefit of our European allies—while those allies sneer at us and deny us use of their airspace.
It’s not just France: Spain and Italy too denied U.S. military planes the ability to refuel on their airbases. The U.K. has been wishy washy at best, refusing to provide any assistance. Honestly, with friends like these, who needs enemies?
Don’t forget that the United States pays the lion’s share of NATO spending. We’ve supplied the vast majority of the funding and the weapons for the war in Ukraine—a war that Europe sees as threatening Europe, not us. Yet when we asked for help, our European allies turned on us in a second, choosing to self-righteously posture about a “war of choice”—while still enjoying the benefits of American defense.
It’s an utterly untenable situation, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio pointed out.
“The United States is constantly being asked to help in a war and we have, more than any other country in the world, on a war that’s happening in another continent—in Ukraine,” said Rubio. “But when the U.S. had a need, we didn’t get positive responses.” He went on: “A couple leaders said that Iran was not Europe’s war. Well, Ukraine isn’t America’s war, yet we’ve contributed more to that fight than anyone. It will be something to examine down the road.”
Liberal pundits have blamed the President’s harsh language toward Europe for Europe’s abandonment of the United States at this time. He angered Europe over Greenland! He threatened to invade and said he needed unfettered access! He imposed reciprocal tariffs! He demanded they pay up for NATO or he would leave the alliance! Of course Europe is mad at us! Of course they aren’t showing up for us!
But Trump was right about all these things. With European nations denying us access to airbases across the continent, it suddenly makes sense why we need sovereignty over Danish airbases in Greenland. Europe was eating our lunch with one way tariffs, and we were subsidizing NATO almost exclusively.
As The New York Times put it,
The United States is the nerve center and bones of the alliance, because Washington had always wanted it that way. But Europe is hardly helpless, and it is spending much more money on the military now, in part because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and in part because of Mr. Trump’s demands, including previous threats to leave the alliance unless its members “paid up.”
How dare Trump make them pay their share of their own defense!
Our European “allies” are upset that they can’t get away with freeloading off the American taxpayer while sneering at our culture, our values, and our President anymore. And they’re expressing this in a passive aggressive, military grade tantrum.
The war in Iran was a test for Europe—and Europe utterly failed it.
The war in Iran was a test for Europe—and Europe utterly failed it.
Meanwhile, it’s our allies in the Gulf who have had our backs. It’s Israel that showed up.
The President is reportedly disgusting with Europe and reconsidering our relationship with NATO. Good. It’s well overdue.
“But what made this gaffe so uniquely worthy of derision wasn’t just how many editors it made it past at the vaunted New York Times. It was the way it sneered down at the United States from atop that mountain of ignorance. “.
This is the old, “I’m rubber, you’re glue, whatever you say about me, bounces off and sticks to you” analogy. Not that you should ever look down on anyone. BUT, it’s been a long time since the NYT should feel comfortable looking down on anyone. The people they employ these days are a collection of “damn dummies” as my dear Dad used to say.
Often in a failed marriage, the spouse that files for the divorce gets blamed for the separation, despite the years of disrespect or abuse caused by the other spouse.