Europe’s path to nowhere: Leaders stuck in a cycle of blunders One mistake after another

The world is at a crossroads. Yes, today the planet is discussing a reshaping of the world, or, as it’s commonly said, the formation of a new world order. Let it be that way, but in any case, the world is truly at a crossroads. Traditional geopolitical ties are being broken, even their bloc format; democracy is now understood as a concept that carries no real meaning behind it; and, worst of all, the widespread death of innocent people is often seen by many as little more than "production costs."

Regardless of whether anyone agrees with this, at the heart of what is happening is the overwhelming decline in the intellectual level of many world leaders. There is a lack of real "universities" of life in their resumes. There is no longer any "passion" in the world that should be driving leaders who are meant to be at the forefront of shaping political, economic, or philosophical thought on the global stage.

After all, how can things be any different if, for example, we look at who is actually leading the major European powers or international organizations? These are people who are casually referred to by anyone as nothing more than administrators. In other words, they are not politicians with significant experience, say, in diplomatic work, but rather people from completely different backgrounds. Could they have been allowed into power, say, 50 years ago? The question is rhetorical, yet, in reality, these individuals—yesterday, today, and perhaps tomorrow—sincerely believe (and will continue to believe) that they are, if not the ultimate arbiters of human fate. But why just believe? In fact, in certain cases, they truly shape events according to their own judgment, often placing emotions, personal sympathies, and antipathies above rationalism, pragmatism, and even logic. That's why they lack the foresight needed to predict events that are brewing, and when they eventually come to fruition, they often end up being a cold (or hot?) shower for them.

So, one might ask, what prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to loudly declare in 2019 that NATO was in a state of "brain death"? The answer is simple: as he stated back then, the United States was providing less and less support for the alliance, even though it remained its main guarantor. At the same time, he expressed doubts about NATO’s ability to ensure collective security for its members.

Let us remind you that this tirade by the occupant of the Élysée Palace was made during the presidency of Donald Trump in the first year of his term. Today, in the context of the collapse of relations between the United States and the European Union, many have once again realized that Macron’s verbal jabs, as usual, amount to nothing. Otherwise, following his loud cry from 2019, we would have seen some kind of action from the Europeans, especially given Trump’s official involvement in the new presidential race last year. In other words, since Trump, whom Macron had so unequivocally criticized in 2019, ended up among the presidential candidates, why didn’t Macron start sounding the alarm with his well-known European team and prepare arguments for a possible Trump presidency?

Most likely, for a very prosaic reason. Macron and his team, including the new members of the European Commission (completely inexperienced in the intricacies of global politics), simply relied on the unconditional victory of Joe Biden, and then Kamala Harris. After all, how else could they have acted when the major global agencies assessed the candidates for the US presidential election solely through the lens of the number of followers of musical stars like Taylor Swift, who were calling for support for the Democratic Party? In other words, this Macron-led team behaved like a group of underperformers, whose favorite phrase is always "maybe it will work out." But it didn’t. And should it have?

Wouldn't it have been better to prepare a package of solutions in advance, allowing for equal discussions on important geopolitical issues with Trump, who surged to the top of Olympus, with his own set of rules? And what, didn’t Macron and his team know this? Well, most likely, they didn’t. They were relying on "maybe it will work out." And now, they’ve reached the consequences of that mindset. Today, they babble on, not even knowing what they’re saying. But one thing is clear — it’s something incoherent. Externally, of course, they try to put on a good face while playing a bad hand, often, like José Mourinho, blaming their defeats on referees. But are there any referees here, other than the electorate, which truly understands what’s going on? But what is appearing before their eyes? Well, essentially, nothing new: another package of anti-Russian sanctions, pompously presented as “the most significant blow to the Russian economy.” Wait, there’s also talk of sending some European peacekeeping forces to Ukraine after a peace agreement is signed between Kyiv and Moscow. And now, it seems that Trump is no longer speaking out against this idea. But are Europeans really ready for such a move? And will there be unity on this matter?

Time will, of course, tell. But the steps they are taking are unconvincing in any area. For example, in Austria and Germany, most leading politicians continue to ignore the will of their voters, who overwhelmingly supported the "right-wing" parties (almost 30% in the first country, just over 20% in the second). Yet, here, the so-called "centrists," "center-right," or "left" politicians in Europe remain adamantly principled, unwilling to form governments with representatives from the "right-wing" forces. Fine, let’s say they managed to form a coalition. But how can they dismiss the opinion of a significant number of people who went to the polls on election day? After all, the glaring injustice is visible to everyone, even those with little education. And how, in such a case, can they push through the most important decisions for society, essentially ignoring the views of a decent portion of the country?

But no, perhaps those sitting, as they believe, in the "blooming garden" are not concerned with such subtleties. And they don’t want to change their approach to life, so to speak. Just a few days ago, the former foreign minister of Lithuania, Gabrielius Landsbergis, openly stated that "Ukraine must continue fighting and make no commitments. Do not sign any agreements with the United States. We, Europeans, are in the same boat with you. Europe has the resources to help Ukraine." You listen and are amazed. Do these individuals truly believe what they are saying? And if so, where have they been for the past three years?

Well, never mind, they’ll sort it out themselves. We just wanted to take a look at what’s happening from the perspective of understanding what comes next. However, there are far more questions than answers. But one thing is clear: the European Union does not learn from its own mistakes, nor does it want to.