I asked quite a complex question and got an interesting answer:
'for most of the period since the end of the cold war, was the US happy for Europe to be hobbled militarily'
AI Overview
Based on analysis of US foreign policy, it is largely accurate that for the first two decades after the Cold War, the United States was content for European nations to remain militarily dependent, though "hobbled" is a characterization that masks a more complex, strategic, and often ambivalent policy of managed dependency.
This U.S. approach was not necessarily intended to cripple Europe, but rather to ensure that European military capabilities remained firmly integrated under American command via NATO, preventing the rise of a rival European security structure.
Key Aspects of Post-Cold War US-Europe Defense Relations:
- Managed Dependency (1990s–2010s): Following the Soviet collapse, the US promoted the enlargement of NATO and the EU eastward, but it also encouraged a, or benefited from, a, "free-rider" situation where European nations slashed defense budgets. The U.S. favored European contributions to security, but only if they did not lead to an independent "strategic autonomy".
- The "Three Nos": In the late 1990s, the Clinton administration formalized a stance against European defense integration that created: 1) no independent, non-NATO, 2) no independent strategic planning, and 3) no duplication of NATO capabilities.
- The "No Duplication" Doctrine: U.S. administrations (both Democratic and Republican) consistently warned that EU defense efforts—separate from NATO—would undermine the Atlantic Alliance, making the treaty organization obsolete.
- "Buy American" Policy: While the U.S. frequently complained about low European defense spending, it often opposed European initiatives to build a consolidated, independent, European-led defense industrial base, preferring that allies purchase American equipment.
- Shifting Priorities (Post-9/11 and 2010s): After the 9/11 attacks, and particularly as the US pivot to Asia began, Washington continued to demand higher burden-sharing from Europe, yet it remained skeptical of any serious independent military capacity that could challenge US influence or act independently of US foreign policy.
Recent Re-evaluation (2020s):
The Russian invasion of Ukraine, combined with fluctuating U.S. commitment to NATO under the Trump administration, has led to a significant shift. While European nations are now aggressively pushing for military independence, they still rely heavily on US-made weapons, leading to a complex reality where the U.S. is now encouraging more, not less, European capability, although structural,, industrial dependence on the US remains.
