In this mailing:
by Richard Kemp
• November 14, 2016 at 5:30 am
- It is the EU, not
Donald Trump, that threatens to undermine NATO and the security of the
West. An EU defence union will present a direct threat to NATO,
competing for funds, building in duplication and confusion, and
setting up rival military structures.
- "You can't
say the past doesn't matter, the values we share don't matter, but
instead try to get as much money out of NATO as possible and whether I
can get a good deal out of it." — German Defence Minister Ursula
von der Leyen.
- This is
breath-taking hypocrisy from the defence minister of Germany, which
spends less than 1.2% of GDP on defence against an agreed NATO minimum
target of 2%, while freeloading off the America's 73% contribution to
NATO's overall defence spending.
- European leaders
would do well to recognize that they need the US more than the US
needs them, and that real, concrete, committed defence from the
world's greatest military power is more beneficial to them than a
fantasy army that will have plenty of flags, headquarters and generals
but no teeth.
- Trump should also
prioritize both practical and moral support to anti-Islamist regimes
in the Middle East, such as Sisi's Egypt.
- Rather than
spreading fear and false propaganda about Donald Trump, they should be
praying that he will provide the strength that is so desperately
needed today, and working out how best they can support rather than
attack him.
(Image source: Twitter/Donald Trump)
Since Donald Trump's election, media-fuelled panic has engulfed
Europe, including over defence and security. We are told that World War III
is imminent, that Trump will jump into bed with Putin and pull the US out
of NATO. Such fantasies are put about by media cheerleaders for European
political elites, terrified that Trump's election will inspire support for
populist candidates in the forthcoming elections in Germany, the
Netherlands and France.
In fact, it is the EU, not Donald Trump, that threatens to undermine
NATO and the security of the West. In recent days, European Commission
President Jean-Claude Juncker, his foreign policy chief, Federica
Mogherini, and German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen have suggested
that Trump's election should give greater impetus to a European defence
force.
by Burak Bekdil
• November 14, 2016 at 4:00 am
- They will have to
deal with a man who says he does not mind being called a dictator.
- Most recently,
the World Justice Project placed Turkey 99th out of 113
countries on its Rule of Law Index 2016, performing even worse than
Myanmar and Iran.
- Turkey is also
now the world's biggest jailer of journalists and academics. It also
claims the title of the world's biggest jailer of opposition
politicians.
- There is little
Europe can do about the new dictatorship emerging at its doors.
Germany is offering dissidents asylum. But asylum can only be an
individual, tentative solution for a few Turks when at Erdogan's
target are millions.
Turkey's political distance from Europe and the West is
growing. The EU has said a number of Turkish laws regarding fundamental
rights were "not in line with European standards" and expressed
"grave concern" over the arrests of journalists, opposition politicians
and academics. Pictured: European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker
(right) and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left). (Image source:
Turkish President's Office)
Bilateral relations with NATO ally Turkey are probably not on
president-elect Donald Trump's top-50 priority list. All the same, when
Trump's diplomats will have to work with Turkey on issues that may soon
gain prominence -- such as Syria -- they will have to deal with a man who
says he does not mind being called a dictator.
Instead of resembling a Western democracy in the European Union -- to
which Turkey has long been struggling to join as a full member -- Turkey
increasingly looks like Kim Jong-Un's North Korea. Most recently, the World
Justice Project placed Turkey 99th out of 113 countries on its
Rule of Law Index 2016, performing even worse than Myanmar and Iran. The
index measures nations for constraints on government powers, absence of
corruption, open government, fundamental rights, order and security,
regulatory enforcement and civil and criminal justice.
Turkey is also now the world's biggest jailer of journalists and
academics.
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