Less than one percent of American Second World War veterans are still with us. An average of 735 die each month. There are many fruits of that war. The one in the news almost daily is the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
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NATO has served its purpose well since the North Atlantic Treaty of April 4, 1949. It kept the peace through the Cold War right up until the fall of the Berlin Wall on Nov. 9, 1989. This, along with the dissolution of the Soviet Union on Dec. 26, 1991, can perhaps be called the true end of World War II, or perhaps more accurately, the end of World War I and the Versailles and Yalta world order they created.
On May 8, there will be a grand military parade in Moscow to commemorate the end of World War II in Europe 80 years ago. Who knows if there will be peace in Europe by then? But if NATO has any military role to play, one thing is clear. It no longer needs the United States. Prostrate after World War II, Europe can now stand on its own feet. If it is afraid that Russia is planning an invasion of Central Europe and Germany, it needs to start drafting its own citizens again to provide a credible defense of its own territorial interests.
There are currently about 27 million males between the ages of 20 and 30 in the EU. The current fertility rate is 1.5. As best I can determine, countries with an active draft are Austria, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, and Sweden. Often, this service is brief by American standards. Conscription was first imposed as part of the French Revolution in 1789. It was discontinued by France in 1997. President Macron has talked about restoring it, but nothing of military value has been implemented at this time.
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If Europe wants to defend Europe and have a credible military presence without the United States, it would need to both pay up and sign up. Russia, like Ukraine, has a draft. When Prime Minister Keir Starmer blustered the other day about Britain sending troops to Ukraine, you had to wonder what he was talking about. Britain has about 74,000 full-time army personnel, enough to fill a football stadium. They have had ships that don’t go to sea, not because they aren’t working. They stay ashore because they don’t have enough sailors to man them.
Related: Trump to Zelenskyy: ‘You Should Never Have Started’ the War
Last week, President Trump was the man all dressed up with nowhere to go when he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the man who should have read “Dress for Success” on his flight to Washington. As a friend commented, I am an advocate for dressing for the job you want. Adhering to the “uniform of the day” keeps people on an outward level footing, shows respect for those around you and the occasion, and makes for easier, more natural interactions.
Well, Volodymyr was dressed for the bum’s rush he got after that meeting. He promptly ran off to meet with the European enablers of a war his forces are currently losing. He opted for a military solution over the diplomatic solution Trump was offering.
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This gives Trump a perfect chance to not only get America out of the Ukraine debacle but also begin a phased withdrawal of the United States from NATO. It is a treaty alliance that, after long and faithful service, is ready to retire. There are far more risks than rewards for the United States staying in it. Yes, there is a time when birds need to learn to fly on their own.
