EU-U.S. dispute over Ukraine war

Ebrahim Beheshti, Staff writer

AP

War costs for Europe, war benefits for U.S.

Protests and strikes in European countries have increased during the past months after the economic consequences of the Ukraine war were revealed to the public. It is expected that these protests will increase as the war drags on, as there is no clear prospect for its end.

The economic consequences of the war, except for Russia and Ukraine, have had the greatest impact on the livelihood and the economy of European countries and its prolongation has now raised the question in the minds of European people: Why should they be the only ones bearing the costs of the war in Ukraine?

Following the United States’ entry into the conflict, European countries felt the need to enter the battle between Russia and Ukraine. Interestingly, as they are witnessing the negative economic effects of the war especially on energy and food on their countries, they have also been spending exorbitant amounts of money in support of the Ukrainian government. Josep Borrell, the European Union foreign policy chief announced three weeks ago that the amount of European aid package to Ukraine has exceeded eight billion euros so far.

These costs have caused some European officials, along with their own people, to criticize the costs of the war for Europe and its benefits for the U.S. Particularly, the export of American liquefied gas to Europe, as well as the huge profits from the contracts for the sale of American weapons have upset the cost-benefit balance between Europe and the United States, causing vast disagreements.

These disagreements revealed a major gap in the Western community. Borrell recently said in an interview with Politico, “Americans – our friends – take decisions which have an economic impact on us.”

Similarly, French President Emmanuel Macron said right before his trip to the U.S. that the high price that Americans receive from European countries for liquid gas is not a friendly behavior.

Over a month ago, the Lebanese newspaper Rai al-Youm, published in London, wrote in a report, “At the same time, as the fuel crisis and its prices are getting worse and the harsh cold season is approaching, the differences between the United States and its European allies, especially France and Germany are increasing. It can be said that Europe, under the leadership of France, has started an act of rebellion and defiance against the U.S. and the war in Ukraine.”

In this regard, French Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire warned Washington against trying to gain economic dominance over the Western world by abusing the Ukraine war in order to weaken Europe.

Similarly, Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto warned, “I want to say that we are not alone in opposing the Russian energy embargo, and several European colleagues have told me that they are against the embargo on the purchase of Russian oil.”

Hence, it seems that with the prolongation of the war and the increase of its economic consequences for Europe, the differences of opinion between Europe and America will increase.