Armin Papperger, chief executive of Rheinmetall has said that Europe has been parked at “The Little Kids Table”. Why should European countries, in close proximity to the flaming genocidal imperialist super-power wannabe Russia, remain seated at the little kids table ? Are they chained there ? They are not !!
Trump does NOT have Europe’s interest at heart. Russia certainly does not. Europe should NOT wait patiently and nervously to see what Trump and Putin will carve for their future.
Kellogg said; the reason European countries are not seated at the table is that at the Minsk deal of 2015 France and Germany were at the table and it didn’t work out, so they are not included now (their input will be “considered”). EXCUSE ME ! The reason the Minsk deal didn’t work out is because Putin is determined to conquer Ukraine and has attacked !!
Ukraine has already announced that decisions made without Ukraine, about Ukraine, will be ignored. Ukraine can not, should not and will not accept or sign a product, disguised as a “negotiated peace agreement” that leaves their security in the hands of Moscow’s willingness to comply. Europe should demonstrate that same resolve. Don’t like the little kids table ? Stand up and leave it !!
Russia is clearly the enemy and nothing less. No matter how sugarcoated by diplomacy, you can not describe it any other way. The U.S. is no longer a friend - what other possible interpretation is available after the Hegseth and Vance speeches ? Why, WHY sit back, quivering and wait to see what they cook up ?
Stop talking about NATO. NATO isn’t going to get it done. The U.S. (Trump), Hungary (Orban), Slovakia (Fico) all have veto power over NATO. Silence and hope worked so poorly in 1938 that the adults in Europe should not consider silently hoping in 2025.
Europe, in a casual sidewalk street conversation over coffee level of concern, seems to recognize that they are at war. Knowing that, maybe someone at Rheinmetall can convince them to act like it
The rump European members of NATO (ie excluding Hungary and other crypto-fascist regimes) could perhaps “accidentally “ leak their hitherto secret plans for developing their own medium- range nuclear arsenals, along with the attendant anti missile defenses, hopefully bolstering US offensive and defensive capabilities but if necessary, supplanting them if the US backs out of NATO.
I'm concerned, seriously, that psychopathic narcissist Trump wants to be one of the most powerful people in the world and act as a dictator with nukes on the world stage. But I wonder how he would feel if Mexico, let's say, demanded the return of Tejas, New Mexico and Arizona to Mexico. Would Trump or any American be willing to give up part of the country with no return? Yet our President blithely has no problem giving the aggressor 20% of Ukraine.
The peace terms that are needed as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine are (a) Russia withdraws from every inch of Ukraine, including the Donbas and Crimea; (b) Russia pays substantial reparations to the families and towns and cities they destroyed in a major program of reparations and rebuilding; (c) Russian withdraws from the two Ukrainian nuclear power plants it currently occupies, and perhaps (d) Russia demilitarizes completely in order to have peace with Europe.
Russia is losing this war; it's roads and train lines are falling apart, its economy is a mess headed for disaster, and its shadow fleet of foreign-flag tankers has been exposed and should be sunk after the oil is draining to help pay for reparations.
Absolutely! So far as I know, Putin and a few of his people are up for being arrested and brought to the International Criminal Court at the Hague. Just because he's 'friends' with Trump doesn't change that.
Porter - maybe a sort of reverse Zimmerman ploy? Mexico tells Trump “if you give away Ukraine we take back Texas”? Maybe toss SoCal and some other states in there for negotiating leverage.
So what’s the hammer that the Mexicans hold? The millions of immigrants that would flow into the US, adding to the 10 million Trump promises to deport.
Europe lived this twice, at least. First, This is how the Roman Empire finished, when citizens became wealthy and pacifist. Then, this is how second world war started, when Hitler has gotten all he wanted in Munich, 1938. Europe must grow up and state that we, not Ukraine, are at war. And if you are at war, you send soldiers and they die. No one wants to hear this, which does not make it less true. Si vis pacem, para bellum. https://open.substack.com/pub/nomadicmind/p/the-war-we-pretend-not-to-see?r=31fxoh&utm_medium=ios
Exactly - I agree with you and have been trying to tell people this since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Russia never planned to stop at Ukraine. It was Ukraine’s unexpected resistance to the Russian invasion that stopped Russia’s further invasion into Europe.
Putin has stated openly that he wants to rebuild the old Soviet Empire. That includes a good chunk of Europe. Without any force to stop Russia why stop at the old borders???
As an American, I am heartsick and ashamed to say it, but Europeans should not hold to any thought that the US will stand by them, under any circumstances.
Europe has relied on the United States for its defense for too long. What made sense during the Cold War does not make sense now - not when Europe as a whole has far more people and industrial capacity than Russia, but is still letting Russia pick off European countries one by one because it has outsourced its defense to the US (which has way less of an interest in protecting Ukraine than Poland or Germany do) and Europeans are too timid to join the war without America's go-ahead.
I wrote all about this in an article at my substack last year, called "The Poland Paradox - How Faraway Allies Make Small Countries Less Safe."
I have fears that a similar thing will happen in Asia. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines all have a strong common interest in containing Chinese (and North Korean) expansion - but they are unlikely to act on that interest as long as the have weak militaries and base their defense policy on asking for help from the United States (which lacks a similar interest and, despite its bluffs to the contrary, is likely to abandon East Asia if war breaks out.)
The American interest *was* the defense of the free world, which meant that the front lines against tyranny were supposed to remain far away across the seas, and also that we would have many free and affluent partners in commerce, and research, and cultural exchange. We largely arranged the postwar world *for our benefit,* but also in accord with our stated values (for the most part).
Abandoning all that will surely leave us poorer and weaker in every way.
Germany is one of the major European heavyweights in economy, armaments production (Rheinmetall) and lately a strong participant in the “Russia must be stopped” mindset. AfD, the German opposition party, is the opposite; being strongly rooted in Trumps far right extremism and pro-Russia, anti-Ukraine attitude. [Vance and Musk have vocally supported AfD] Calling on Germany to participate in ramping up a unified European pro-Ukraine effort before the election could strengthen the AfD voting results. This could weaken subsequent German energy available to offer to the hopefully strong coalition that Europe can create to outmaneuver Trump/Vance/Rubio and get more funds, on the order of €100s of B, and ammunition flowing in support of the Ukraine war effort.
Russia can lose. Europe can make it happen. Waiting till after the German election could ease the process.
That it is time for Europe to step up is an understatement. The countries of Europe have long been held in a slumber so profound that it might be likened to an enchantment. One could compare it to JRR Tolkiens Lord of the Rings, when King Théoden, King of Rohan and Lord of the Mark, is held in a enchanted slumber by Grima Wormtongue - which is finally broken by Gandalf the White.
Europe badly needs a Gandalf and my hopes that he might be kicking around in the shadows at Munich or Paris were dashed.
Olaf Scholz bad tempered rhetoric when he threw his toys out of the pram at Paris is most likely motivated by the fact that he is a lame duck Chancellor about to lose an election in ten days. If I was being ungenerous I would also comment on his radical communist past in East Germany.
I wonder if as mentioned by Dom Nicholls of the London Telegraph the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) might be the best organisation which is European and not directly NATO and therefore able to act more nimble manner to the overall NATO organisation which could be nobbled by opposition from the pro Russian countries of Hungary and Slovakia.
Listening to Ukraine The Latest and he was talking about JEF again. I will quote
“The U.K.'s nuclear deterrent is declared to NATO, and so therefore says that Britain will, in extremis, use nuclear weapons to defend and attack on any country in the Joint Expeditionary Force, because all ten nations in the Joint Expeditionary Force are in NATO. So, they have all agreed this mutual defense clause, that an attack on one isn't an attack on all, they will all come to each other's mutual aid, up to and including the British nuclear deterrent. So if I was allowed a second question to the British Defense Secretary this morning, but I was not only allowed the one, if I was going to ask a second one, I would say, well, why doesn't JEF have a mutual defense clause?
Everyone has sort of signed up to that in principle. You do it through NATO. Why doesn't JEF have a mutual defense clause to which you can invite Ukraine?
And that would get away from the difficulties of the US or, you know, a Hungarians, Slovakia, etc., etc. Why doesn't JEF have a mutual defense clause?”
From Ukraine: The Latest: Revealed: Trump’s confidential plan to put Ukraine in a stranglehold, 18 Feb 2025
Quite the conundrum Bill. I am going to remain confident for now. I have a funny feeling Europeans are not going to agree to voluntarily join Putin’s Soviet Union 2.0 without a fight because:
So sorry everyone [all the European leaders shrugging their shoulders in unison] but we can’t defend you from Russian aggression without the US.
But we can offer everyone a ten-percent group discount price on any Russian Language Course purchased during the month of March.
Quite the conundrum Bill. I am going to remain confident for now. I have a funny feeling Europeans are not going to agree to voluntarily join Putin’s Soviet Union 2.0 without a fight because:
So sorry everyone [all the European leaders shrugging their shoulders in unison] but we can’t defend you from Russian aggression without the US.
But we can offer everyone a ten-percent group discount price on any Russian Language Course purchased during the month of March.
European countries will never really solve this because all their politicians think in terms of their own national constituencies and not the interests of EU as a whole. They surely all can see that an European soldiers are needed to defend Europe, but none want to say it out loud.
Tongue in cheek proposal (but one that, rationally thinking, makes lots of sense): Adapting an idea from Robert Heinlein's "starship troopers" - a big issue across all EU is opposition to large-scale immigration from non-European cultures. At the same time, Europeans aren't ready to go to battle for their ideals. So, offer any would-be immigrant this deal: 5-year tour (training + deployment) in a European army in exchange for full citizenship on completion of the tour. Training will include social/cultural aspects and units are mixed native/immigrant, so immigrants completing the tour would be well assimilated by the end. Xenophobes have no argument to deny citizenship to someone who served, immigrants will be self-selected to those willing to adapt and serve, and Europe gets a much needed military manpower boost.
Well, one thing we never hear about from our press barons (and our robber barons) is a reminder that 2 months into the war with Russia, Zelensky was trying to negotiate a peace agreement with Putin. That was around May 2022. What happened next was that the U.S. and Britain 'persuaded' Zelensky to stop talking to Putin; they promised him that they would back Ukraine militarily against Russia's invasion. Zelensky was TOLD to comply with the U.S.'s and UK's demand. So, for the last 3 years Ukraine has depended for its existence on whatever NATO members have been prepared to supply by way of weapons systems. Zelensky was right all along; he knew that Ukraine could not successfully stand up to Russia. In this respect, I sympathise with Zelensky; he was in a 'no win' situation, squeezed by both sides.
In the West, everyone blames Putin for the war. In a way they are right. However, there is an aspect of the story about the run-up to Putin's 'special military operation' in February 2022 which few people know about and don't want to listen to. In February 2014, there was a NATO-supported coup in Kiev, spearheaded by a nationalist racist neo-Nazi group. They formed a government which broke Ukrainian laws that acknowledged and protected ethnic minority groups within Ukraine. From now on, only the Ukrainian language and culture were to be taught in schools - no Hungarian, Romanian or Russian ones. In response to this new radical government declaration (which the then President of Ukraine refused to sign off), there were passionate protests in Eastern Ukraine where most of the population, although Ukrainian citizens, were of Russian extraction and owed their livelihood to their jobs in local Ukrainian factories that exported iron and steel products to Russia. The demonstrators staged a sit-ins in some public buildings and waved placards denouncing the government's plan to suppress their language and culture.
Instead of allowing the local police to deal with the demonstrators and instead of sending negotiators to the Donbass region, the newly formed nationalist-racist government in Kiev sent the army eastward to suppress the dissent there. In response, the dissenters formed a rag-tag 'army' and in March 2014 a civil war broke out. It was only then that Russia gradually intervened on the side of the Russian-speaking dissenters; and Putin also took over Crimea to protect the Russian naval base there. The West, instead of protesting at the Kiev government's high-handed military attack on its own citizens in eastern Ukraine, decided to blame Putin! And when a Malaysian passenger plane was shot down over the Donbass region in July 2014, again the West blamed Putin, without any evidence and without asking, "Cui bono?" In fact, Putin lacked any motive to shoot down a passenger plane, and in my opinion the most likely culprit was a faction within the new fanatical government in Kiev - which wanted NATO dragged into the intra-Ukrainian conflict. And that of course is what gradually happened between 2014 and 2022.
This contrasts with the wishes of Gorbachev, who granted Ukraine independence in 1991, and Putin, who came to power in December 1999. Gorbachev and Putin had envisaged Ukraine to be a non-aligned European country which would continue to maintain iron and steel trade and friendly relations with Russia. NATO was trying to break down this traditional relationship, and their aim was make Ukraine a NATO member. It was for this reason that Putin, as a representative of the "Russian bear" feeling squeezed into a corner, decided to invade Ukraine in 2022. He blames Ukraine, which is understandable, given the kind of government Ukraine got itself (with Obama's help) in 2014; but he also blames Zelensky, who had nothing to do with that government. And that is unfair of Putin.
Maybe this clarifies the situation, as Trump and Putin are about to have a face to face meeting. I agree with those who say that, ideally, Ukraine ought to be a party to the peace negotiations. However, Zelensky has said so many offensive things about Putin and Trump that neither of them want to include Zelensky in the talks; and Trump wants to simplify the talks with Putin - and ensure a definite outcome - by excluding Ukraine and all Europeans from them. What would be the point of having Zelensky there, behaving immaturely and demanding NATO membership? Ukraine needs a mature, clever and self-controlled diplomat-representative.
And so, out of political and military weakness, Europe and Ukraine have had to face the fact that they won't have any final say in the outcome. They will simply be told, and possibly asked to comment. In fact, Zelensky's and Europe's outraged but empty stance totally undermines any sympathy Trump or Putin might have had for Ukraine: Zelensky says that Ukraine must become a NATO member, and THAT is totally unacceptable to Putin and it's not going to happen.
Zelensky should take note of Finland's position in 1945. It had fought against Russia during 1939-40 (the Winter War) and lost. It then joined the Axis Powers and fought with Germany against the USSR, reaching Stalingrad. The Finns feared the worst, for good reason. However, they had wise politicians and clever diplomats and reached a favourable deal with Stalin: they retained domestic independence with a parliament, multi-party system, free election, and non-membership of the Warsaw Pact. They could trade with the West as well as Russia. It is such cleverness that Ukraine desperately needs today, and they don't seem to understand this.
The Russia-Ukraine War is a war that could have been prevented. It was the events of 2014 that caused the trouble in the first place. But also it was NATO's membership recruitment in Eastern Europe, going back to the 1990s. Also, going back 2008, a pro-Western Ukrainian government at that particular time promised the Ukrainian people that Ukraine would one day become a member of NATO, and this goal was incerted into the Ukrainian constitution. That paragraph is still there, and Putin will demand it be erased. In fact, it appears that Putin's demands are hardening.
Congratulations Putin and you fascist ass-hole Trump!
GO UKRAINE!
Armin Papperger, chief executive of Rheinmetall has said that Europe has been parked at “The Little Kids Table”. Why should European countries, in close proximity to the flaming genocidal imperialist super-power wannabe Russia, remain seated at the little kids table ? Are they chained there ? They are not !!
Trump does NOT have Europe’s interest at heart. Russia certainly does not. Europe should NOT wait patiently and nervously to see what Trump and Putin will carve for their future.
Kellogg said; the reason European countries are not seated at the table is that at the Minsk deal of 2015 France and Germany were at the table and it didn’t work out, so they are not included now (their input will be “considered”). EXCUSE ME ! The reason the Minsk deal didn’t work out is because Putin is determined to conquer Ukraine and has attacked !!
Ukraine has already announced that decisions made without Ukraine, about Ukraine, will be ignored. Ukraine can not, should not and will not accept or sign a product, disguised as a “negotiated peace agreement” that leaves their security in the hands of Moscow’s willingness to comply. Europe should demonstrate that same resolve. Don’t like the little kids table ? Stand up and leave it !!
Russia is clearly the enemy and nothing less. No matter how sugarcoated by diplomacy, you can not describe it any other way. The U.S. is no longer a friend - what other possible interpretation is available after the Hegseth and Vance speeches ? Why, WHY sit back, quivering and wait to see what they cook up ?
Stop talking about NATO. NATO isn’t going to get it done. The U.S. (Trump), Hungary (Orban), Slovakia (Fico) all have veto power over NATO. Silence and hope worked so poorly in 1938 that the adults in Europe should not consider silently hoping in 2025.
Europe, in a casual sidewalk street conversation over coffee level of concern, seems to recognize that they are at war. Knowing that, maybe someone at Rheinmetall can convince them to act like it
The rump European members of NATO (ie excluding Hungary and other crypto-fascist regimes) could perhaps “accidentally “ leak their hitherto secret plans for developing their own medium- range nuclear arsenals, along with the attendant anti missile defenses, hopefully bolstering US offensive and defensive capabilities but if necessary, supplanting them if the US backs out of NATO.
I'm concerned, seriously, that psychopathic narcissist Trump wants to be one of the most powerful people in the world and act as a dictator with nukes on the world stage. But I wonder how he would feel if Mexico, let's say, demanded the return of Tejas, New Mexico and Arizona to Mexico. Would Trump or any American be willing to give up part of the country with no return? Yet our President blithely has no problem giving the aggressor 20% of Ukraine.
The peace terms that are needed as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine are (a) Russia withdraws from every inch of Ukraine, including the Donbas and Crimea; (b) Russia pays substantial reparations to the families and towns and cities they destroyed in a major program of reparations and rebuilding; (c) Russian withdraws from the two Ukrainian nuclear power plants it currently occupies, and perhaps (d) Russia demilitarizes completely in order to have peace with Europe.
Russia is losing this war; it's roads and train lines are falling apart, its economy is a mess headed for disaster, and its shadow fleet of foreign-flag tankers has been exposed and should be sunk after the oil is draining to help pay for reparations.
Reparations are compensation. Separately, they have to pay damages too.
Also absolutely need (e): certain individuals must be brought into a courtroom.
Absolutely! So far as I know, Putin and a few of his people are up for being arrested and brought to the International Criminal Court at the Hague. Just because he's 'friends' with Trump doesn't change that.
Maybe the EU could cut a deal with the Somali pirates to target those Russian tankers and hold them for ransom.
Sweden and Finland with gatekeeper to the Baltic Denmark, already have that in hand.
Porter - maybe a sort of reverse Zimmerman ploy? Mexico tells Trump “if you give away Ukraine we take back Texas”? Maybe toss SoCal and some other states in there for negotiating leverage.
So what’s the hammer that the Mexicans hold? The millions of immigrants that would flow into the US, adding to the 10 million Trump promises to deport.
You really think Trump is that stupid and gullible? You might be right...
Europe lived this twice, at least. First, This is how the Roman Empire finished, when citizens became wealthy and pacifist. Then, this is how second world war started, when Hitler has gotten all he wanted in Munich, 1938. Europe must grow up and state that we, not Ukraine, are at war. And if you are at war, you send soldiers and they die. No one wants to hear this, which does not make it less true. Si vis pacem, para bellum. https://open.substack.com/pub/nomadicmind/p/the-war-we-pretend-not-to-see?r=31fxoh&utm_medium=ios
Exactly - I agree with you and have been trying to tell people this since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Russia never planned to stop at Ukraine. It was Ukraine’s unexpected resistance to the Russian invasion that stopped Russia’s further invasion into Europe.
Putin has stated openly that he wants to rebuild the old Soviet Empire. That includes a good chunk of Europe. Without any force to stop Russia why stop at the old borders???
Thank you
I AS AN AMERICAN CITIZEN BACK UKRAINE!!! There should NOT be a deal without Ukraine being involved fully🙏🏼✌🏼
As an American, I am heartsick and ashamed to say it, but Europeans should not hold to any thought that the US will stand by them, under any circumstances.
Europe has relied on the United States for its defense for too long. What made sense during the Cold War does not make sense now - not when Europe as a whole has far more people and industrial capacity than Russia, but is still letting Russia pick off European countries one by one because it has outsourced its defense to the US (which has way less of an interest in protecting Ukraine than Poland or Germany do) and Europeans are too timid to join the war without America's go-ahead.
I wrote all about this in an article at my substack last year, called "The Poland Paradox - How Faraway Allies Make Small Countries Less Safe."
https://twilightpatriot.substack.com/p/the-poland-paradox
I have fears that a similar thing will happen in Asia. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines all have a strong common interest in containing Chinese (and North Korean) expansion - but they are unlikely to act on that interest as long as the have weak militaries and base their defense policy on asking for help from the United States (which lacks a similar interest and, despite its bluffs to the contrary, is likely to abandon East Asia if war breaks out.)
The American interest *was* the defense of the free world, which meant that the front lines against tyranny were supposed to remain far away across the seas, and also that we would have many free and affluent partners in commerce, and research, and cultural exchange. We largely arranged the postwar world *for our benefit,* but also in accord with our stated values (for the most part).
Abandoning all that will surely leave us poorer and weaker in every way.
there will be no european agreement until one month after the german elections
Why is this Bill? What does the German election have to deal with America. You do have some viable points.
Germany is one of the major European heavyweights in economy, armaments production (Rheinmetall) and lately a strong participant in the “Russia must be stopped” mindset. AfD, the German opposition party, is the opposite; being strongly rooted in Trumps far right extremism and pro-Russia, anti-Ukraine attitude. [Vance and Musk have vocally supported AfD] Calling on Germany to participate in ramping up a unified European pro-Ukraine effort before the election could strengthen the AfD voting results. This could weaken subsequent German energy available to offer to the hopefully strong coalition that Europe can create to outmaneuver Trump/Vance/Rubio and get more funds, on the order of €100s of B, and ammunition flowing in support of the Ukraine war effort.
Russia can lose. Europe can make it happen. Waiting till after the German election could ease the process.
That it is time for Europe to step up is an understatement. The countries of Europe have long been held in a slumber so profound that it might be likened to an enchantment. One could compare it to JRR Tolkiens Lord of the Rings, when King Théoden, King of Rohan and Lord of the Mark, is held in a enchanted slumber by Grima Wormtongue - which is finally broken by Gandalf the White.
Europe badly needs a Gandalf and my hopes that he might be kicking around in the shadows at Munich or Paris were dashed.
Olaf Scholz bad tempered rhetoric when he threw his toys out of the pram at Paris is most likely motivated by the fact that he is a lame duck Chancellor about to lose an election in ten days. If I was being ungenerous I would also comment on his radical communist past in East Germany.
I wonder if as mentioned by Dom Nicholls of the London Telegraph the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) might be the best organisation which is European and not directly NATO and therefore able to act more nimble manner to the overall NATO organisation which could be nobbled by opposition from the pro Russian countries of Hungary and Slovakia.
Listening to Ukraine The Latest and he was talking about JEF again. I will quote
“The U.K.'s nuclear deterrent is declared to NATO, and so therefore says that Britain will, in extremis, use nuclear weapons to defend and attack on any country in the Joint Expeditionary Force, because all ten nations in the Joint Expeditionary Force are in NATO. So, they have all agreed this mutual defense clause, that an attack on one isn't an attack on all, they will all come to each other's mutual aid, up to and including the British nuclear deterrent. So if I was allowed a second question to the British Defense Secretary this morning, but I was not only allowed the one, if I was going to ask a second one, I would say, well, why doesn't JEF have a mutual defense clause?
Everyone has sort of signed up to that in principle. You do it through NATO. Why doesn't JEF have a mutual defense clause to which you can invite Ukraine?
And that would get away from the difficulties of the US or, you know, a Hungarians, Slovakia, etc., etc. Why doesn't JEF have a mutual defense clause?”
From Ukraine: The Latest: Revealed: Trump’s confidential plan to put Ukraine in a stranglehold, 18 Feb 2025
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ukraine-the-latest/id1612424182?i=1000693640259&r=1504
Quite the conundrum Bill. I am going to remain confident for now. I have a funny feeling Europeans are not going to agree to voluntarily join Putin’s Soviet Union 2.0 without a fight because:
So sorry everyone [all the European leaders shrugging their shoulders in unison] but we can’t defend you from Russian aggression without the US.
But we can offer everyone a ten-percent group discount price on any Russian Language Course purchased during the month of March.
Quite the conundrum Bill. I am going to remain confident for now. I have a funny feeling Europeans are not going to agree to voluntarily join Putin’s Soviet Union 2.0 without a fight because:
So sorry everyone [all the European leaders shrugging their shoulders in unison] but we can’t defend you from Russian aggression without the US.
But we can offer everyone a ten-percent group discount price on any Russian Language Course purchased during the month of March.
European countries will never really solve this because all their politicians think in terms of their own national constituencies and not the interests of EU as a whole. They surely all can see that an European soldiers are needed to defend Europe, but none want to say it out loud.
Tongue in cheek proposal (but one that, rationally thinking, makes lots of sense): Adapting an idea from Robert Heinlein's "starship troopers" - a big issue across all EU is opposition to large-scale immigration from non-European cultures. At the same time, Europeans aren't ready to go to battle for their ideals. So, offer any would-be immigrant this deal: 5-year tour (training + deployment) in a European army in exchange for full citizenship on completion of the tour. Training will include social/cultural aspects and units are mixed native/immigrant, so immigrants completing the tour would be well assimilated by the end. Xenophobes have no argument to deny citizenship to someone who served, immigrants will be self-selected to those willing to adapt and serve, and Europe gets a much needed military manpower boost.
See? This is why the EU is still dependent on America 80 years after WWII.
Well, one thing we never hear about from our press barons (and our robber barons) is a reminder that 2 months into the war with Russia, Zelensky was trying to negotiate a peace agreement with Putin. That was around May 2022. What happened next was that the U.S. and Britain 'persuaded' Zelensky to stop talking to Putin; they promised him that they would back Ukraine militarily against Russia's invasion. Zelensky was TOLD to comply with the U.S.'s and UK's demand. So, for the last 3 years Ukraine has depended for its existence on whatever NATO members have been prepared to supply by way of weapons systems. Zelensky was right all along; he knew that Ukraine could not successfully stand up to Russia. In this respect, I sympathise with Zelensky; he was in a 'no win' situation, squeezed by both sides.
In the West, everyone blames Putin for the war. In a way they are right. However, there is an aspect of the story about the run-up to Putin's 'special military operation' in February 2022 which few people know about and don't want to listen to. In February 2014, there was a NATO-supported coup in Kiev, spearheaded by a nationalist racist neo-Nazi group. They formed a government which broke Ukrainian laws that acknowledged and protected ethnic minority groups within Ukraine. From now on, only the Ukrainian language and culture were to be taught in schools - no Hungarian, Romanian or Russian ones. In response to this new radical government declaration (which the then President of Ukraine refused to sign off), there were passionate protests in Eastern Ukraine where most of the population, although Ukrainian citizens, were of Russian extraction and owed their livelihood to their jobs in local Ukrainian factories that exported iron and steel products to Russia. The demonstrators staged a sit-ins in some public buildings and waved placards denouncing the government's plan to suppress their language and culture.
Instead of allowing the local police to deal with the demonstrators and instead of sending negotiators to the Donbass region, the newly formed nationalist-racist government in Kiev sent the army eastward to suppress the dissent there. In response, the dissenters formed a rag-tag 'army' and in March 2014 a civil war broke out. It was only then that Russia gradually intervened on the side of the Russian-speaking dissenters; and Putin also took over Crimea to protect the Russian naval base there. The West, instead of protesting at the Kiev government's high-handed military attack on its own citizens in eastern Ukraine, decided to blame Putin! And when a Malaysian passenger plane was shot down over the Donbass region in July 2014, again the West blamed Putin, without any evidence and without asking, "Cui bono?" In fact, Putin lacked any motive to shoot down a passenger plane, and in my opinion the most likely culprit was a faction within the new fanatical government in Kiev - which wanted NATO dragged into the intra-Ukrainian conflict. And that of course is what gradually happened between 2014 and 2022.
This contrasts with the wishes of Gorbachev, who granted Ukraine independence in 1991, and Putin, who came to power in December 1999. Gorbachev and Putin had envisaged Ukraine to be a non-aligned European country which would continue to maintain iron and steel trade and friendly relations with Russia. NATO was trying to break down this traditional relationship, and their aim was make Ukraine a NATO member. It was for this reason that Putin, as a representative of the "Russian bear" feeling squeezed into a corner, decided to invade Ukraine in 2022. He blames Ukraine, which is understandable, given the kind of government Ukraine got itself (with Obama's help) in 2014; but he also blames Zelensky, who had nothing to do with that government. And that is unfair of Putin.
Maybe this clarifies the situation, as Trump and Putin are about to have a face to face meeting. I agree with those who say that, ideally, Ukraine ought to be a party to the peace negotiations. However, Zelensky has said so many offensive things about Putin and Trump that neither of them want to include Zelensky in the talks; and Trump wants to simplify the talks with Putin - and ensure a definite outcome - by excluding Ukraine and all Europeans from them. What would be the point of having Zelensky there, behaving immaturely and demanding NATO membership? Ukraine needs a mature, clever and self-controlled diplomat-representative.
And so, out of political and military weakness, Europe and Ukraine have had to face the fact that they won't have any final say in the outcome. They will simply be told, and possibly asked to comment. In fact, Zelensky's and Europe's outraged but empty stance totally undermines any sympathy Trump or Putin might have had for Ukraine: Zelensky says that Ukraine must become a NATO member, and THAT is totally unacceptable to Putin and it's not going to happen.
Zelensky should take note of Finland's position in 1945. It had fought against Russia during 1939-40 (the Winter War) and lost. It then joined the Axis Powers and fought with Germany against the USSR, reaching Stalingrad. The Finns feared the worst, for good reason. However, they had wise politicians and clever diplomats and reached a favourable deal with Stalin: they retained domestic independence with a parliament, multi-party system, free election, and non-membership of the Warsaw Pact. They could trade with the West as well as Russia. It is such cleverness that Ukraine desperately needs today, and they don't seem to understand this.
The Russia-Ukraine War is a war that could have been prevented. It was the events of 2014 that caused the trouble in the first place. But also it was NATO's membership recruitment in Eastern Europe, going back to the 1990s. Also, going back 2008, a pro-Western Ukrainian government at that particular time promised the Ukrainian people that Ukraine would one day become a member of NATO, and this goal was incerted into the Ukrainian constitution. That paragraph is still there, and Putin will demand it be erased. In fact, it appears that Putin's demands are hardening.