Journal Article - Quarterly Journal: International Security

Illusions of Autonomy: Why Europe Cannot Provide for Its Security If the United States Pulls Back

| Spring 2021

Summary

Europe’s security landscape has changed dramatically in the past decade amid Russia’s resurgence, mounting European doubts about the long-term reliability of the U.S. security commitment, and Europe’s growing aspiration for strategic autonomy. Could Europeans develop an autonomous defense capacity if the United States withdrew completely from Europe? If the United States were to do so, any European effort to develop an autonomous defense capacity would be fundamentally hampered by profoundly diverging threat perceptions and severe military capacity shortfalls that would be very costly and time-consuming to close.

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For more information on this publication: Belfer Communications Office
For Academic Citation:

Hugo Meijer and Stephen G. Brooks, "Illusions of Autonomy: Why Europe Cannot Provide for Its Security If the United States Pulls Back," International Security, Vol. 45, No. 4 (Spring 2021), pp. 7–43, doi.org/10.1162/isec_a_00405.

The Authors

Hugo Meijer

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