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The Hallenberg Hallenberg, professor emeritus in political science. File image. Photo: Jessica Gow/TT
US Vice President JD Vance is most worried about the “threat from within” regarding Europe’s security – not from Russia or China.
-Completely absurd, says US expert Jan Hallenberg.
JD Vance attracted attention with his speech at the Munich Security Conference on Friday.
Instead of focusing on Russia’s attack war and what a possible peace plan in Ukraine could look like, he focused, among other things, on illegal immigration and the threat to freedom of speech in Europe.
– The threat I am most concerned about in Europe is not Russia, China or any other external player. What I worry about is the threat from within, that Europe backs from some of its most fundamental values, values that are shared with the United States, said Vance.
“Stronging”
Jan Hallenberg, professor emeritus in political science, emphasizes that the speech takes place at a time when many Europeans are extremely concerned about Russia’s actions.
– It’s startling. It is also extremely startling that a representative of an administration that harms democracy more than any other administration has done in modern history in the United States, will be leaving Europe about how our democracies should work, says Hallenberg.
Hallenberg is wondering if the speech may not have been so much addressed to the Europeans, but rather to the American audience.
– But I do not think it will have any positive effects, but rather it shows the gap that exists between today’s USA and the majority of Europe. And I think that is gloomy, because Europe’s security needs a committed USA, he says.
“Not reliable in the long run”
How worrying is it for Europe’s security that he expresses himself like this?
– The speech is not crucial, but it is crucial how they act in the Ukraine issue, and we still do not know.
JD Vance met on Friday the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj, but it is unclear what it resulted in. No major announcements were made after the meeting.
Vance also took the opportunity to encourage Europe to strengthen its defense because the United States had to focus on threats in other parts of the world.
– I think that is reasonable and it realizes the Europeans as well. After the speech, it became even clearer that we cannot expect the United States to be really reliable in the long term, but that Europe must trust itself, says Hallenberg.