On the eve of the opening of its summit, NATO seems more fragile than ever. During the discussions which will begin in Ankara, everyone around the table will have Donald Trump’s recurring attacks in mind. For months, the American president has no longer hesitated to criticize those who are still officially his allies, threatening them with withdrawal from the organization. The withdrawal has already begun: the United States has already announced the departure, within a year, of 5,000 soldiers out of the 36,000 positioned in Germany.
Faced with American threats, two attitudes are possible. First, we can regret Washington’s disengagement, lament the comments of the tenant of the White House or hope for a more or less rapid departure of Donald Trump and a reestablishment by his successor of a solid alliance.
But it is also permissible to think differently and take the threats from the United States seriously. Because Donald Trump has less and less support for this alliance which he considers “unilateral”, in particular when Italy and Spain refuse the use of their bases and their airspace to American planes preparing to bomb Iran. And it is possible that this distancing from Europe will not stop at the end of the Republican president’s mandate, and augurs more broadly the end of an era and the emergence of new alliances.
In this case, let us draw the conclusions: NATO members must seriously consider doing without the United States. The resources are obviously financial – the aim of the Ankara summit is precisely to take stock of the commitment of NATO members to devote 5% of their GDP to their defense. But they are also political: after having hesitated for a long time, it is time for Europe to overcome the old divisions and to finally unite.
