EU Faces Paralysis as Middle East War Rages: Ursula's Doomed Strategy
Amid fears of Russia's rising influence, the EU's embrace of US-backed regime change in the Middle East has left it 'stunned, sidelined and disunited' in the face of a deepening conflict.
The message from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was blunt: Europe can no longer be a custodian for the old-world order and needs a more realistic and interest-driven foreign policy. In a major foreign policy speech this week, Von der Leyen acknowledged that in a precarious and chaotic world, the EU's reliance on the rules-based system could no longer be taken for granted.
Reverberating around Europe, the Middle East conflict has indeed triggered a range of responses from the bloc. France is sending a dozen naval vessels to the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, while EU officials have convened an ad-hoc summit with Middle Eastern leaders in a show of solidarity with the region. EU humanitarian aid for Lebanon is also being ramped up in the wake of the crisis.
{{IMAGE_PLACEHOLDER}}However, the deeper reality is one of paralysis and disunity within the EU as it grapples with the fallout from the war. Von der Leyen's embrace of US-backed regime change already looks like a doomed strategy, with the conflict strengthening Russia's influence in the region.
Amid fears that the Middle East war will further embolden Moscow, the EU finds itself stunned, sidelined and unable to effectively respond. The bloc's attempts to assert its own foreign policy agenda have been repeatedly thwarted, exposing the limits of its power and influence.
{{IMAGE_PLACEHOLDER}}One EU official described the situation as a
Source: The Guardian
