Comments by "DasBubba" (@dasbubba841) on "Poland vs. France: Can the EU Create an Alternative to NATO? - VisualPolitik EN" video.

@kamilszadkowski8864 The problem is that the calculus is different between members. For France and Germany, they have Poland and the Baltics as buffer from them and Russia. Also, after the Fukushima disaster, Germany stupidly decided to phase out nuclear power. To make up the difference (since renewables aren't as efficient yet), they decided to import Russian gas. To them, it would be worth it to sacrifice Ukraine to keep good terms with Russia. Poland, however, does NOT want Russia or a Russian-puppet Ukraine on their border. Having Putin-friendly Belarus is bad enough. This is why an EU-led army would fail. The members have different priorities.
9
Europe is divided and weak. Germany and France showed that they were willing to sacrifice Ukraine to Russia in exchange for cheap natural gas. How would an EU defense force work, if have of the EU isn't willing to defend the other half?
3
As if the Poles would put their army under the command of the French or Germans.
2
Typical arrogant European. The EU did nothing while the Serbs slaughtered Bosniaks. It was the US and UK who had to step in. Do you think Russia looks at Germany as an equal? No, they don't. Did Germany and France step in to help Ukraine? No, Germany actually tried to bar Lithuania from sending German-made equipment to Ukraine.
2
NATO has been a big part of keeping the peace in Europe. However, it has also meant that Europe has gotten complacent. Western European nations such as Germany and Spain keep the military budgets purposely low because they have US protection and Eastern Europe as a buffer. Putin threatening Ukraine was actually what the US badly needed. For a long time now, Europe (especially the French and Germans) have been nagging Washington for greater autonomy (such as an EU army). However, the crisis in Ukraine revealed how woefully unprepared and divided Europe is. Whereas Eastern Europe railed to the Ukrainians, the Germans and the French were reluctant to risk jeopardizing trade relations with Russia over Ukraine. To Eastern Europe, it looked like they were willing to sacrifice them to the Russians in exchange for Nord Stream. It exposed the divisions in the EU and between Western and Eastern Europe. This couldn't be better for the Americans, especially since their prestige has been at a low since Afghanistan.
2
@Constantine_Brooks It took the US and UK, under the framework of NATO, to stop the Serbs from genociding the Bosniaks. Europe did nothing. They stood by and watched.
2
Russia only recognized the US as it's equal. Russia looks down on Germany and France.
1
@gordonsmith4884 Georgia never had nukes, though Ukraine did. They gave them up because one, they were expensive (and the command and control facilities were located in Moscow, but that wasn't a huge concern) and two, it was then topical to practice disarmament. Also Russia was weak. They could develop nukes again (it wouldn't be hard, as they built nukes for the USSR), but that might cause more problems than it would solve.
1
@Raddon You say that as Russia breathes down the neck of Europe. If they have the army to back up their ambitions (and Russia has always been a "hard-power" nation), why wouldn't they use it?
1
@Raddon And if NATO did not exist? The country would be in the sphere of influence of Russia, which would try to expand it's influence as far west as possible. It's something they have historically always tried to do. So what you're implying that it would be better if Russia dominated half of Europe, rather than Ukraine be in NATO and have to deal with "tension"?
1
@Raddon The Partitions of Poland, the Napoleonic Wars, the Crimean War (and the various other wars against the Ottomans), Russia's intervention in the Hungarian War of Independence of 1848, the Second World War, interventions to crush popular uprisings in Czechoslovakia and Hungary. Russia has a long history of expansion in Europe. It's how it went from a small dutchy around Moscow to the world's largest country. To say it isn't expansionist is delusional.
1