Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday that “Europe needs to learn how to fully take care of itself” and “spend as much on security as is truly needed,” instead of expecting the United States to protect it for free.
Zelensky’s address to the WEF echoed points made by U.S. President Donald Trump, both during his first administration and 2024 presidential campaign. The Ukrainian leader said Trump’s return to the White House was a wake-up call, but some Europeans are fumbling for a snooze bar that does not exist:
Twenty hours ago, President Trump’s inauguration took place in Washington. And now everyone is waiting to see what he’ll do next. His first executive orders have already shown clear priorities. Most of the world’s now thinking: so, what’s gonna happen to their relationship with America? What will happen to alliances? To support? To trade? How does President Trump plan to end wars?
But no one is asking these kinds of questions about Europe. And we need to be honest about that.
When we in Europe look at the United States as our ally, it’s clear – they are an indispensable ally. In times of war, everyone worries: will the United States stay with them? Every ally worries about that. But does anyone in the United States worry that Europe might abandon them someday, might stop being their ally? The answer is no.
Zelensky noted that even the departed Biden administration made no secret of taking Europe for granted as it focused on the Indo-Pacific and Middle East. His point was not to blame the Americans for being dismissive, but to chide the Europeans for not giving Washington enough reasons to pay attention to them.
Zelensky also pointed out that Europe, unlike America, does not have oceans separating itself from the malevolent and aggressive power of Russia. He reminded his listeners that Russia producers far more munitions than all of Europe combined, even though its economy is vastly smaller.
“Russia is turning into a version of North Korea – a country where human life means nothing, but they have nuclear weapons and a burning desire to make their neighbors’ lives miserable,” he lamented.
Zelensky implied that Trump was correct to press for higher levels of European defense spending, instead of expecting the U.S. to defend the continent while its governments plow their budget into socialist programs.
“If it takes five percent of GDP to cover defense, then so be it, five percent it is,” he said, citing the percentage Trump has demanded. “And there is no need to play with people’s emotions that defense should be compensated at the expense of medicine or pensions or something else. That’s really not fair.”
Zelensky also issued a very Trumpian call for a sea change in European energy policy, advising the EU nations to take advantage of increased American energy production now that Joe Biden has been dispatched, and develop their own resources.
“Europe needs to step up and do more long-term work to secure real energy independence. You can’t keep buying gas from Moscow while also expecting security guarantees, help, and backup from the Americans. That’s just wrong,” he said, advising his European listeners to line up at America’s gas pump if it wants to continue enjoying American protection.
Near the end of his speech, Zelensky chastised the Europeans for collapsing into socialist inertia while America and China dominate cutting-edge industries like artificial intelligence.
“Europe is often more focused on regulation than on freedom, but when smart regulation is needed, Brussels hesitates,” he said.
Zelensky was not the leader to back Trump’s critique of European economic and security practices after the 45th President became the 47th President this week. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told the European Parliament to welcome Trump’s blunt talk as a much-needed awakening from a “time of comfort” on the continent.
“We shouldn’t be irritated. We shouldn’t be appalled,” Tusk said on Monday. “Only an ally can wish another ally to get stronger. This is not what an opponent of Europe would say.”
French President Emmanuel Macron used the same wake-up call language as Zelensky and Tusk in an address to his military forces on Monday.
“What will we do in Europe tomorrow if our American ally withdraws its warships from the Mediterranean? If they send their fighter jets from the Atlantic to the Pacific?” Macron asked, making exactly the same point Zelensky hit in Davos the next day.
Of course, Zelensky’s version of blowing the reveille Trump-et was framed in terms of his country’s desperate need for assistance against the invading Russians. In a meeting with the International Media Council in Davos on Wednesday, Zelensky parted company with Trump on the question of whether Russian President Vladimir Putin could be persuaded to accept a peace deal – something Trump said he could accomplish soon after he returned to the White House, if not before.
“We must all understand: Putin does not want to end the war and has never wanted to. He has not achieved the goals he set. For him, it is, as they say, the essential goal of Ukraine’s independence. Destroying it is his most important dream,” Zelensky said on Wednesday.
“it is unlikely that Putin now has a vision of a way out of this war,” Zelensky judged.
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