It is known that when the East moves towards the West, the alarm bells ring. It does not matter whether the official name of the aggressor is the Tsarist Empire, the Soviet Union or the Russian Federation, the movement of the East to the West requires a united front. The wars of Livonia, Crimea, Poland, and Finland are all historical manifestations of military confrontation between the East and the West.

In all these years, Europe’s dependence on the support of the United States, especially in the form of NATO, became clearer and clearer. The common security treaty, security organizations, the idea of ​​the European army, none of them could provide a higher value than the North Atlantic Treaty.

Political and security analysts tried to check the extent of Europe’s dependence on Washington’s support in all the crises of recent decades. The Kosovo war in 1998 revealed the answer. The key to solving the problems was in the hands of NATO and at the head of it the United States. After nearly 20 years and in the current war in Ukraine, what is the extent of Europe’s dependence on the United States, is the question that we seek to answer in this writing.

Europe need for US leadership

Europe is dependent on the United States in security, economic, diplomatic and political matters in the Ukraine campaign. In the field of security, the weakening of Russia for Europe is something that can only be realized with Washington’s support. The United States is trying to strengthen an effective deterrent against Russia’s power, and in the meantime, Ukraine can be a good opportunity for both the United States and Europe.

In the economic matter, despite the capabilities of the European Union, it is the White House that has the ability to create a single and powerful sanctions regime. In relation to political and diplomatic discussions, if establishing a ceasefire, returning to the negotiating table and ultimately restoring peace and stability to the region is one of the most important goals of the West, the support of the United States for this process is essential. As a result, it is evident that Europe is still dependent on the United States for the war in Ukraine, but knowing that governments pursue their own interests in international relations, one should ask what is the strategy of the United States in relation to Russia and the war?

US strategies in the face of the Ukrainian campaign

Research related to the subject of battle and competition between great powers in international politics is rich and long-standing, and one of the most important parts of it is the effort of great powers to expand their influence beyond their borders and calculate their relative power compared to other competitors.

Regarding the war in Ukraine and the competition between the United States and Russia, Washington pursues specific goals and strategies based on its own interests. First of all, the United States clearly knows that the defeat of Russia will cause as much instability in Europe as it looks attractive. As a result, the option of failure will be changed to the policy of credit degradation and gradual weakening. This case will open Washington’s hand to compete with other challengers, especially China. In addition, Russia seeks to expand its influence in the region. On the other hand, due to the high geopolitical importance of Ukraine as a bridge between Asia and Europe, the United States is not willing to hand it over to other major powers. Besides this, if Ukraine is lost, the influence of the United States in Europe will also be greatly reduced; Because supporters of the transatlantic relationship with the United States in Europe, such as Poland, Romania, and the Baltic states, will be disappointed in the ability of the United States to support Europe against Russia.

Another issue is energy security, which the United States is trying to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian gas. The history of Moscow’s political pressure on Europe through the threat of cutting off gas transmission to the West, which is unprecedented, has made measures such as the development of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure important, along with the US gas export program to Europe and the strengthening of pipelines from Azerbaijan to Turkey and then the West should form the principle of the US strategy in the matter of energy and its security in the green continent.

Europe; Needy but idealistic

The European Union also follows specific strategies regarding the issue of Ukraine. Europe shares realistic strategies with the United States, although the European dream is ultimately tied to idealism and the desire for a beautiful peace. Brussels will eventually pressure Kiev to negotiate with Moscow because, as mentioned, supporting negotiations and establishing dialogue in order to restore peace and stability to the region constitute the principle of their foreign policy. In the lower priorities, there are policies such as supporting the territorial integrity of Ukraine, supporting independence, political reforms and emphasizing humanitarian goals. Finally, it should be emphasized that security and restoring stability is an issue that Europe will not be able to achieve without close cooperation with the United States, and the solution other than this is European idealism.

Ugliness and beauty of transatlantic cooperation in Ukraine

It is no secret that the war in Ukraine caused the revival of NATO, especially in its security function. Also, the battle in Europe significantly strengthened the traditional transatlantic relations on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. In addition, the influence of the soft power of the West on global public opinion and on governments was once again tested, and the pleasant values ​​of the West, such as the consolidation and promotion of democracy, human rights, the right to choose, and reforms and development, once again resonated in the world with the example of Ukraine. In addition to these cases, the transatlantic front is also vulnerable to weakening. The risk of harsh and costly actions by Russia, the further expansion of the war towards the West, the possibility of Republicans winning the American elections and reducing support for Ukraine, and finally the existence of differences in the decisions of European leaders regarding the continuation of the war with Russia and support for Ukraine are issues that the Western front must think about them.