With, without, against Washington: Redefining Europe's relations with the United States

Lippert, Barbara (Ed.) and Mair, Stefan (Ed.)

No 5/2026, SWP Research Papers from Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP), German Institute for International and Security Affairs

Abstract: The Pax Americana, which guaranteed the security of Germany and Europe after the Second World War, is coming to an end. Europe can no longer rely on its alliance and partnership with the United States. Even before Donald Trump's second presidency, Europe was seeking to reduce its dependency on Washington for peace, democracy and prosperity. This cannot be achieved overnight, and will require a significant increase in material resources and strategic thinking over the next five to ten years. The fourteen contributions to this SWP Research Paper show how different the starting conditions for developing transition strategies are, depending on the policy area and challenges. Europe needs to consider all the options: with, without or even against Washington. The analyses of Europe's agency and the scope for European policy towards Russia, the Middle East and China are very wide-ranging. Trump's logic of quick deal-making and unilateralism under the banner of "MAGA" often collides fundamentally with the EU's multilateral foreign and security policy, which is bound by international law, and its commitment to sustainable peace. The keywords for the urgent reorganisation of security in Europe are: Europeanisation of NATO, strengthening Europe's own military capabilities, new leadership constellations for security policy in Europe, and resilient governance in technology and cybersecurity. Even at this geopolitical turning-point ("Zeitenwende"), the EU should continue to develop its soft power. When it comes to the crucial questions of global governance -from UN and international law to trade, climate and energy policy - Europe must find new partnerships and, if necessary, new institutional solutions without and against the United States.

Keywords: Pax Americana; Germany; Europe; EU; United States; Russia; Ukraine. dependency; Russia; Middle East; China; Donald Trump; MAGA; sustainable peace; Europeanisation of NATO; strengthening Europe's own military capabilities; new leadership constellations for security policy in Europe; resilient governance in technology and cybersecurity; "Zeitenwende" (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:swprps:339603

DOI: 10.18449/2026RP05

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