Sliding Into Uncertainty
Transatlantic ties, already strained, face more challenges under the Trump administration
WThe author is an associate researcher with the Institute of European Studies under the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations
hen the 55th Munich Security Conference (MSC), the annual gathering to discuss international security issues in Munich, Germany, was held from February 15 to 17, perhaps in an attempt to make up for its absence at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, in January, the United States sent a large delegation. The “Davos” of security policy was attended by Vice President Mike Pence and acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, followed by senior Senator Lindsey Graham and Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.
However, those politicians could not help bring transatlantic relations back on track, nor did they inject new vitality into the partnership, leaving the alliance to slide into an unknown future.
Transatlantic camaraderie?
The conference was marked by tensions between the United States and European countries, both overt and covert. At the very beginning of the meeting, MSC Chairman Wolfgang Ischinger went all out to criticize U.S. President Donald Trump. In the opening speech, he said the Ukrainian crisis had long been regarded as the primary cause of the current global instability until he realized that the U.S. president himself had become the biggest challenge to the current international order. Ischinger’s remarks suggested that Europe has no intention to conceal its resentment against the Trump administration.
The next day, German Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed in a passionate speech to uphold multilateralism, not withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal, and support the Nord Stream 2 project that will provide natural gas from Russia to Europe through Germany. She also defended increasing Germany’s defense spending to 1.5 percent of GDP in 2024. Accusing the Trump administration of imposing new tariffs against Germany, she questioned how importing cars from allies could be a security threat to the United States.
Having announced that she won’t run for another term as chancellor and will withdraw from German politics, Merkel was not encumbered by any future plans or constraints and was free to express her views.
With French President Emmanuel Macron grappling with the Yellow Vest protest movement, British Prime Minister Theresa May mired in Brexit, and the Italian populist government busy with the European Parliament elections in May, where traditional parties will fight EUskeptic parties, Merkel, whether she admits it or not, has already taken the lead in Europe’s clash with Trump.
The U.S. delegation came prepared. In his speech, Pence continued to urge European leaders to spend more on defense, saying “Many of our NATO allies still need to do more.” He also urged Europe to stop “undermining U.S. sanctions” on Iran and explicitly asked Britain, France and Germany to withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal though the United States had once claimed to respect the attitudes of other sovereign states on the issue. In response to Turkey purchasing Russian air defense weapons, he said, “We cannot ensure the defense of the West if our allies grow dependent on the East.”
This was the second time Pence had attended the MSC as U.S. vice president. Although he extended a partial olive branch to allies, saying “America first doesn’t mean America alone,” he played down the U.S. security commitment to Europe, saying the increase in U.S. military power meant the commitment had been delivered. He also took the opportunity to provoke dissension within the EU by praising the European countries opposed to the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
Pence laid more emphasis on Trump’s achievements, attributing the increase in Europe’s military spending in recent years to him and praising him as the leader of the “free world.” There were several embarrassing moments. An awkward silence prevailed when Pence conveyed Trump’s greetings and boasted of the U.S. president’s “achievements.” Annegret Kramp-karrenbauer, the new leader