War is devastating for human beings because millions of irreprehensible lives perish; however, is this also devastating for the bellwethers especially if a war transpires in a peregrine land and can avail you in resolving the major internal and external challenges? War in Ukraine is strategically paramount for the US interest because, in the absence of war, the US was facing major challenges on the domestic and international front.
Liberal World order was crumbling because the current generation in the US and Europe did not optically discern horrors of war and lacked the paramountcy of these political and security institutions constructed after World War II. War on terror could not engender the same psychological impact on the public as the second World War. Political and security institutions developed after WW2 were in decline.
Read more: Pakistan embassy provides shelter to Indian students stranded in Ukraine
Understanding the actual matter
The current generation in the European countries does not understand the paramountcy of spending on bulwarks and the transatlantic partnership. The current European institutions were products of war, and for their aegis, war is necessary as well. The most vital security institution in Europe, NATO, was on the verge of failure. French President was called NATO brain dead a few years ago. Germany, the most important country in Europe, was intransigent about pursuing the orchestration of the Nord Stream-2 Pipeline. The European countries were also not yare to blindly follow the power politics wrapped in normative verbiage.
Although the Russia-Ukraine war is devastating affairs for humanity and human security, the current war in Ukraine can avail the US in fortifying NATO, dividing the world into ideological lines, cut-off Europe from Russia, and incrementing awareness in Europe about the consequentiality of American defense, and engendering troubles for China and ineluctably dividing Russia and China. All these objectives seem palpable because the US kept pursuing the expansion of NATO despite many US cogitators warning against it.
Ted Galen Carpenter indited an article in Guardian yesterday in which he mentioned that he inscribed in his book in 1994 that Russia won’t see NATO eastwards expansion friendly. In 1998, George F. Kennan, the most renowned foreign policy strategist, noted that NATO’s eastward expansion is a tragic mistake that will attract a bad reaction from Russia. John Mearsheimer also warned about the negative repercussions of the NATO expansion. Furthermore, Hennery Kissinger also talked about the vigorous connection between Ukraine and Russia. He was against the conception of Ukraine joining NATO.
Read more: Russian forces seize key city in Ukraine
Why Ukraine joining NATO is a bigger issue than we think?
Robert Gates, the former defense secretary, wrote that bringing Georgia and Ukraine into NATO is overreaching; in addition, he accepted that these actions were against the national interest of Russia. Many writers mentioned that the expansion of NATO WAS an erroneous decision. Even after the tension commenced ascending in Ukraine, Germany was not yare to send military aid to Ukraine.
While reading all these famous writers and policymakers, this question arises in mind that then why western countries were pursuing the same policy and giving military aid to Ukraine? It can be said that Ukraine is an independent and sovereign country. They have the right to choose whoever they want to; however, this argument does not hold ground because the US policy does not follow the normative perspective until they have a national interest in it. This conflict can avail the US in achieving national interest in the following ways.
First, The US is going to build pressure on China to truncate support of Russia. Due to the conflicting long terms aims of China and Russia, China does not operate to lose the western countries completely for Russia. If China keeps fortifying Russia, then it can also construct China’s support for Russia as the coalition of dictatorships against democracies.
It will be very arduous for China to relish the same level of connectivity with the EU while fortifying Russia in eschewing sanctions. Since the commencement of this conflict, many writers have been inscribing that western countries should put sanctions on China to stop Russia. In lieu of just giving Russia another option and reinforcing its economy, the US can divide them by exhibiting to Russia that China cannot support it, and it has to align itself with the West. As Hal Brand recently indited in Foreign Affairs Journal, to divide Russia and China, first, we have to assemble them.
Read more: Russia-Ukraine conflict: Can OSCE replace NATO?
This war can certainly do it
Secondly, this war has engendered a mundane monster for European countries, which is killing white people with Blue-eyes. The Western public can relate to them in a much better way. It additionally sanctions the regime to increment defense spending. The political unity is additionally getting a new push. Germany was not yare to increment defense spending; however, they promulgated to increment bulwark spending. This assailment also helped the European countries in becoming a vigorous political community. In this crisis, relative to previous years, the EU countries showed unprecedented solidarity.
NATO does not seem to be a brain-dead institution anymore, which lacked a purport. Germany has suspended Nord-Stream-2 pipelines. It signifies that the possibility of vigorous Russian-German cognations is on hold as well. Although Turkey is not consummately sacrificing its relations with Russia, Turkey additionally became proximate to western countries during this crisis.
The President of Hungry is not giving anti- European speeches anymore. In my view, by provoking Russia to assail Ukraine, the US has brought western countries under its umbrella. The US has shown the European countries that they can no longer pursue independent policies regarding Russia and China. Domestically, Joe Biden is additionally emerging as the bellwether of the free world standing up to sovereigns; it might avail him in ameliorating his waning popularity.
Read more: Ukraine invasion was inevitable: Notable strategists
Hence, all these things point out that the assailment on Ukraine is bringing human tragedy and suffering; nevertheless, it seems that the US can utilize this war to achieve its national interest such as dividing Russia and China, reinforcing crumbling liberal institutions, and might help Biden in victoriously triumphing midterm elections.
The writer is working as a researcher at the Institute of Policy Studies, Islamabad. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.