Trumpism’s Resilience Must Encourage a European Awakening
Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer
Director of Research, Transatlantic Security and Director of the Paris OfficeIn an interview with French daily Le Monde, the director of GMF’s Paris office, Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer, explains that Europe must "wake up strategically" and set its own international priorities. If not, the Biden administration will not take its European partners seriously, and the transatlantic partnership will fail. She stresses that Europe must realize three things: "America first" will remain the priority; domestic polarization will make international American commitments fluctuate; and Europe will be used by Washington as an instrument to contain Chinese power. In this context, she also looks at the positions of France and Germany more specifically. According to De Hoop Scheffer, Biden's foreign affairs advisers have sent very clear messages to the Europeans: NATO, the Paris Agreement, and the WHO will be supported by the United States, provided that the Europeans align themselves behind the U.S. towards China. Most notably in decoupling strategic technological sectors such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and 5G networks. The United States also demands that Europeans take a greater role in crisis management in the Mediterranean, Africa, and the Middle East. This corresponds to the American pivot to Asia and funneling resources to the Indo-Pacific.
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