Kor

Those are a lot of words for someone who has lost the argument some comments ago. Continuing to use whataboutisms and creating straw men to advance your warped view on geopolitics simply outs you as an imbecile, not worth any more effort.

No. We have been talking about the present and future threats to the EU while you choose to mostly indulge in past actions that weren't even conducted by justification of Europe's immediate security. Geopolitical concerns have fundamentally changed since then and you are now comparing rotten apples to budding oranges, calling them one and the same, which obviously they are not.

I agree, the EU isn't perfect, but it is the best the world has to offer for the future of democracy and individual freedoms. Afterall, perfect is the enemy of good.

You keep repeating the same talking points. That doesn't make them any more true. How boring of you.

On one end there's rational fear of irrational authoritarian regimes, and on the other fearmongering on the basis of lies. If you cannot discern which regime uses which rhetoric, then all further discussion seems moot to me.

The whataboutisms must flow!

What would change without having the weapons? Nothing, other than the EU being a soft target for rivaling power blocks, inviting more war into Europe. Look at poor Ukraine. Putler thought them weak and attacked. Same power dynamics since the dawn of man.

You should also keep in mind that the EU is a supra-national federalist construct. So a sudden and all-encompassing power grab of the executive branch by the authoritarians - like the one in the US - simply isn't possible due to all participating nations still being sovereign and having their own military.

And what about US aggression towards parts of the EU like Greenland? You sure you want to decrease military spending against an increasingly facist super power right on your doorstep that has already openly stated to be very much interested in forcefully attaining your overseas territory? I don't think so. Pacifism, unfortunately, is dead in this new age of multilaterlism and worldwide resurging authoritarianism.