US Vice President JD Vance called on Europe to show greater independence in an interview published on Tuesday, urging countries not to be “US vssals.”
He also said EU capitals could have done more to oppose Washington over the Iraq War.
Many European nations were correct about the folly of the US-led invasion of Iraq, US President JD Vance said in an interview with the right-wing news website UnHerd
After his blistering attack on Europe’s leaders at the Munich Security Conference in February, citing culture war issues and migration, Vance sought to paint a more positive picture of his feelings toward the continent.
What Vance said on Europe and the Iraq War
“I love Europe … I love European people,” Vance told the website, adding: “It’s not good for Europe to be the permanent security vassal of the United States,” echoing his previous criticism of many European states for their alleged security and economic dependence on the US.
According to Vance, it is “good for the United States” if Europe is more “independent” — allowing countries to “stand up” to US foreign policy decisions.
Vance, who served as a military journalist for six months in Iraq with the US Marines, said European nations that had opposed the Iraq War could have been more robust in their opposition to then-US President George W Bush’s White House.
“I think a lot of European nations were right about our invasion of Iraq. And frankly, if the Europeans had been a little more independent, and a little more willing to stand up, then maybe we could have saved the entire world from the strategic disaster that was the American-led invasion of Iraq.”
How was Europe split on Iraq?
German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder was vocal in opposing the war, calling it “The Mother of all Misjudgements” and making opposition to the war a campaign issue in Germany’s 2002 general election.
Meanwhile, French President Jacques Chirac publicly stated that France would veto any UN resolution authorizing war.
Belgium and Greece were among the states most supportive of the Franco-German opposition to the war, while countries like the UK, Spain, Italy, Poland, and Denmark supported the US-led invasion.
What else has JD Vance said about Europe?
Since becoming vice president in January, Vance has adopted a combative approach to Europe. Like US President Donald Trump, he has criticized the continent for a lack of defense spending and a dependence on exporting to the United States.
The vice president, who is visiting Rome over Easter, used his address at the Munich Security Conference to dismiss threats posed by Russia and China as the biggest ones facing Europe. Instead, he accused European leaders of censoring free speech and failing to listen to voters on immigration.
Vance’s political antipathy to Europe was also made clear in a chat group message on Yemen reported by The Atlantic magazine in which he said: “I just hate bailing Europe out again.”
Edited by: Zac Crellin
