Summary
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asserted that no world leader has the right to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin on behalf of Ukraine.
Speaking to Le Parisien readers, Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine alone determines its future and any dialogue with Russia must follow a peace plan based on strength and international support.
He warned against negotiating without clear guarantees of security, highlighting the risks of Putin resuming aggression after a ceasefire.
Zelenskyy called for a strategy ensuring Ukraine’s long-term stability and security, beyond NATO or EU membership timelines.
YES, please stop relying on us, it’s become a very sore spot for a lot of people.
The problem is that the EU does this submissive bit because we also support the petrodollar. You’re buying the EU economy and markets with those weapons.
Imagine if we gave all of that back and aligned with China instead. It would instantly reduce the US to a regional power - fighting with runaway inflation - economically speaking. Not that I think that would be good for the EU either.
The status of the US as a superpower is founded on its alliances.
The US has a more powerful military than the next 9 countries of the top 10 combined. Based on war power expenditure. We shouldn’t neglect the soft power aspect, but the hard power will keep it a superpower barring collapse of society, which is totally possible.
And what do you pay that military with? Most of that expenditure is wages.
Having a huge and advanced military and getting your economy off a cliff can go one of two ways. Either Germany 1939 or Russia 1991.
There are very intelligent people at the department of defense. I often disagree with their decisions, but they know how the game is played. If the economy goes off a cliff, I guarantee you soldiers will still be paid.
I mean a lot of US folks seem way more smug than actually upset about it. Bringing it up to derail the conversation whenever anyone mentions US imperialism or the one-sidedness of NATO policy, as if the US would ever accept, let alone desire a position as equal among equals.
Just IMO (and a lot of other peoples) military spending is completely out of control and a small fraction of it could pay for healthcare and education for everyone. But I agree the ruling class and associated MIC lobbyists aren’t going to let that happen any time soon, as nice as it would be.
Oh absolutely. Gotta keep the plebs desperate and divided, while billions upon billions disappear into the most toxic and destructive industry there is right alongside fossil fuel corporations.
They managed to keep military spending at an unprecedented level after the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the cold war, in an amazing feat of governmental capture and exploitation by arms industry lobbyists. But it wasn’t enough, because it never is. Line must go up. The US has been seeking new reasons to funnel even more money their way ever since.
Yeah if you make society nice and easy to live in then people stop joining the military.
It could pay for those things but it won’t, even if they stopped funding the military. It would be kept by the billionaire class.