Germany's defense minister, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, reinforced her position this week that Europe still depends on United States security guarantees.

The United States will remain "the most important ally in security and defense policy," Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a speech in Hamburg on Tuesday. "Without the nuclear and conventional capabilities of the U.S., Germany and Europe cannot protect themselves. These are the sobering facts."

Kramp-Karrenbauer, speaking at the Helmut Schmidt University, reiterated the view that Europe needs U.S. help "for the foreseeable future."

This followed French President Emmanuel Macron "profoundly" disagreeing in an interview on Monday, suggesting that European nations must increase their own defense abilities to earn U.S. respect.

Kramp-Karrenbauer noted in the speech that Germany and France, like many NATO countries, have recently increased their military budgets.

"We want Europe to be a strong partner for the United States on an equal footing and not a protegé in need of help," she noted.

Macron has been an advocate of strategic autonomy, arguing that the European Union should strengthen itself as it engages in economic and military matters, and noting that the United States has recently concentrated on Asia and not Europe.

Kram-Karrenbauer wrote a Nov. 2 editorial published by Politico, making the case that "illusions of European strategic autonomy must come to an end."

"Europeans will not be able to replace America's crucial role as a security provider," she wrote. "For the U.S., this means that it needs to keep Europe under its nuclear umbrella for the foreseeable future."

"Germany, for its part, must urgently make the decision to stay inside NATO's nuclear sharing program and assign the required budgetary and military assets quickly in order to remain a reliable nuclear partner," wrote Kram-Karrenbauer.

Her comments drew criticism from Macron, who said in an interview on Monday that respect from the United States will come only if European countries build up their military and economic situations.

"Is the change in the American administration [a reference to the 2020 presidential election] going to see Europeans letting up? I profoundly disagree, for instance, with the opinion piece signed by the German Minister of Defense," Macron said. "The United States will only respect us as allies if we are earnest, and if we are sovereign with respect to our defense."

Macron added that "the changeover of administration in America is an opportunity to pursue, in a totally peaceful and calm manner, what allies need to understand among themselves, which is that we need to continue to build our independence for ourselves, as the United States does for itself and as China does for itself."

Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

New US defense chief tells troops 'time to come home'
Washington (AFP) Nov 14, 2020
Newly appointed Pentagon chief Christopher Miller signaled Saturday that he could accelerate the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and the Middle East, saying, "It's time to come home." "All wars must end," Miller, named acting defense secretary by President Donald Trump on Monday, said in his first message to the US armed services. He said that the US is committed to defeating Al Qaeda, 19 years after the September 11 attacks on the United States, and is "on the verge of defeating" the g ... read more