Danish PM Grilled for Urging EU to Cut Social Spending and Prepare for Conflict With Russia
© AFP 2023 / MARTIN SYLVEST
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The EU is continuing to reel from the consequences of its members’ decision to cut energy imports from Russia. Now, as the US steps back from its role as the main financial backer of the proxy war in Ukraine, European countries have been tapped to step up and take on the burden of trying to save the NATO client state in Kiev from collapse.
Europeans have had it too good for too long and better get used to the idea of their governments spending their tax money on defense instead of social programs, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said.
“From a European perspective we have to admit that we haven’t used enough money on our own defense and security,” Frederiksen said in interview with the Financial Times on Tuesday.
After the end of the Cold War, Denmark and other European countries “were able to spend more money on welfare or tax reductions,” she pointed out. But now, “we need to start the conversation that if the world is changing in the direction I think it will, then you cannot spend your penny, or your dollar, or your euro, or your krone two times,” and Europe must “step up and scale up” defense spending to take on “a more aggressive Russia.”
“We have been too naïve, and in the western part of the world we have been too focused on getting richer, and therefore we also have built up dependencies on countries that we should not be dependent on – gas from Russia, and new technologies from China,” Frederiksen argued.
It’s time for Western leaders to have a “discussion with our populations” about the “price for our freedom,” the politician said, suggesting European countries “in general” haven’t really had to do so in “the past 30 years.”
And even though Denmark is one of the dozen-or-so NATO allies that already meets the alliance commitment to spend 2 percent or more of GDP on defense, Frederiksen said even that is not enough.
“They are building a war economy now in Russia and in a few years they will be able to attack or challenge a NATO country if we are not able to do deterrence and defense and if we are not united in NATO. What we have to do in the coming years is to ensure it will not happen,” Frederiksen said, without clarifying what would motivate Moscow to launch an attack on the Western alliance and trigger World War III.
'#Priorities #MilitaryIndustrialComplex'
The remarks made by the Social Democrats’ party leader, who presides over a grand coalition government which also includes the conservative-liberal Venstre and the center-right liberal Moderates, raised eyebrows in FT’s comments section, with users scolding her for milking the purported threat of Russia to militarize the EU.
“Oh, another European ‘leader’ using the threat of Russia to justify cutting social services and increasing military spending. Because we all know that the real problem in Europe is not the rising cost of living, income inequality, or climate change, it’s the threat of Putin’s big, scary army. #Priorities #MilitaryIndustrialComplex,” one user complained.
“I have heard [she is] job hunting, so any remarks by her should be seen in this light,” another suggested, hinting that perhaps Frederiksen is looking to become the next Ursula von der Leyen or Jens Stoltenberg. “It will be interesting to follow her next position when she moves on from PM. Which board of directors will she be joining?” another person with a similar train of thought asked.
“The 2% thing. Obviously Denmark won’t have this problem thanks to selling Ozempic to obese Americans, but if a country’s economy contracts through daft, self-destructive acts and ‘ally’ actions that harm your economic wellbeing, then your GDP will shrink too. So, 2% of e.g. German GDP today will be a smaller amount in euros and therefore will purchase less military hardware than 1.7% of German GDP a few years ago,” someone else pointed out.
“You can’t have 30 years of offshoring industry, taking away good jobs from good people, leaving behind destitution, rampant drink and drug abuse and despair, enriching the top few in the process, and then, at the last minute, go ‘ooops! Sorry!!’” another user said, suggesting Europe’s problems lie not with Russia, but elsewhere entirely.
“Frederiksen’s ‘I see a more aggressive Russia in all aspects, not only in Ukraine’. And Western support for genocide by its ally Israel is what? Reminiscent of European fascism and Nazism once again wanting to destroy Russia?” one person suggested.
“And who exactly is going to fight in the war on behalf of Denmark? The emasculated men in a non-existent army?” someone asked.
“Naïve European voters are constantly carpet bombarded by ‘their’ leaders and the MSM so they can sleepwalk into war,” another person said.
