The Europeans have let the U.S. and NATO lead them to impending disaster. From Lorenzo Maria Pacini at strategic-culture.su:
Let’s briefly retrace one of the fundamental steps in reaching the current status quo: the dissolution of the order that reigned in Europe.
First rule, conquer
The choice to promote a global order dominated by the collective hegemony of the West after the Cold War had profound consequences for European security. It was clear that NATO enlargement would compromise efforts towards an inclusive pan-European security architecture, leading to a new division of the continent, the isolation of Russia and the reignition of latent conflicts. Many political leaders had warned of the risks of a new cold war resulting from the expansion of the Alliance; however, it was pursued by taking advantage of Russian weakness, with the conviction that any crises could be managed by the West. The expansion of NATO was conceived as a guarantee against future clashes with Russia, which, paradoxically, would have been triggered precisely by this expansion. This contradiction, which led the West into direct confrontation with Moscow, became a central element of the new world order.
There have been many attempts to build a pan-European security architecture based on the Westphalian principles of egalitarian sovereignty, indivisible security and a continent without divisions. The expansion of NATO, on the other hand, rejected this balance of power, favoring the inequality of sovereignty, strengthening its own security at the expense of Russia’s and perpetuating the fragmentation of Europe with a permanent military alliance in peacetime. NATO became an instrument for consolidating U.S. hegemony in Europe and for the strategic containment of Russia, hindering its capacity for nuclear retaliation. For Moscow, these developments represented an existential threat, pushing it to oppose Western unilateralism and to promote multilateral alternatives, although always based on the Westphalian principles.
A common European home against an integrated and free Europe
After the division of Europe after World War II, the capitalist and communist blocs tried to maintain a balance without compromising their respective regional orders. The Helsinki Accords of 1975 marked a turning point, establishing a common framework for European security and reinforcing fundamental principles such as equal sovereignty, indivisible security and respect for territorial integrity. At the same time, principles of justice were sanctioned, such as the self-determination of peoples and respect for human rights.
