February 13, 2025 | The Telegraph
Trump and Hegseth are half right. We cannot have Minsk 3.0
Europe must do more for itself. But it cannot be abandoned
February 13, 2025 | The Telegraph
Trump and Hegseth are half right. We cannot have Minsk 3.0
Europe must do more for itself. But it cannot be abandoned
Excerpt
US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth was half right when he announced today in Brussels that negotiations over the future of Ukraine “must not be a Minsk 3.0.” He is right that the fiasco of Minsk cannot be repeated, but wrong to write off Nato membership and the US security guarantee in Europe.
According to Hegseth, Ukraine’s security will have to be guaranteed by “European and non-European troops” – but not the US military, and not under the umbrella of Nato or Article 5. Hegseth said that the primary burden of supporting Ukraine and of European security more broadly must fall on Europe itself, as America is “prioritising deterring war with China in the Pacific.” He praised Nato members such as Poland which are meeting the alliance’s five per cent defence spending target.
Ivana Stradner is a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.