The power politics of Europe and the United States
- By Heiko Khoo
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E-mail China.org.cn, April 17, 2016
It is the interests of German capitalism that dominate Europe. Germany is the world's fourth largest economy but 50 percent of its GDP comes from exports, and half of these are sold inside the European free trade zone. Germany depends on sustaining this export market - exports that are based on its advanced industrial capabilities. The European currency and European institutions have been structured to serve the needs of these German exporters, and this goes against the interests of other member states' economies. German capitalism depends on exports to sustain its system - including its social and welfare obligations to its citizens. The crisis in Europe threatens these exports and thereby the entire Germanic model.
The weaker economies in Europe are unable to pay their sovereign debts. Greece cannot raise enough taxes to pay its creditors and cuts in public spending have imposed a huge burden on its people. Large swathes of the population and many former state employees - in hospitals, schools, and essential services - have been driven into poverty.
These disenfranchised layers of society are drawn to political alternatives outside of the mainstream. Many people have voted for new left-wing parties, while others have voted for right-wing, anti-immigrant parties. Both sides propose resisting the repayment of debts.
Ukraine has appealed to the United States for support against Russia, because the European Union remains reluctant to openly clash with Russia. The U.S. seeks to progressively undermine Russia. However, from a long-term strategic point of view, the possibility of a Russian-German alliance has been a primary concern of the United States for decades.
U.S. geo-political power is based on its control of the seas and its dominance of space. It uses divide and rule tactics to suppress the military capability of alternative powers, backed by aggressive displays of its military and technical prowess. However, the U.S. Empire is insecure and uncertain of its future role. It is able to militarily defeat weaker opponents and has a tendency to overreach, and to dispatch boots on the ground to occupy countries, rather than supporting local agents with a strong indigenous base of support. U.S. attempts to contain Russia from the west, will, at some stage in the near future, force Germany to readjust: either by forging an alliance with Russia, or by siding with the United States against Russia. So, if Europe breaks apart, a German-Russian alliance is perhaps one of the most likely consequences.
Heiko Khoo is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:
http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/heikokhoo.htm
Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
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