Weimar+ Invites a Post-NATO Future, the End of America's Global Influence

The Weimar Triangle is back, and expanding, in reaction to the US's statements about withdrawal from NATO. It may signal the end of the US's role in cross-continental affairs.

The Weimar Triangle was formed in the 90s as a way for the EU to deal with the impact of the end of communism in Europe. It has basically done nothing since the 90s until the 2010s. It became especially motivated to be more active in reaction to the threats of the first Trump administration's threats around NATO and Brexit. It has more recently been active in allowing the EU countries to react in a uniform way to Russia.

In the run-up to the election it strategically "focuses firstly on the need to strengthen European security and defense by creating a strong European pillar inside NATO."

The latest major news follows a disastrous few days for Hegseth on Ukraine. The Weimar Triangle has expanded to Weimar+ and released a joint statement in support of Ukraine that runs opposite Hegseth on some major points and, notably, in a barely politic way, says that the EU no longer trusts the US to negotiate about Ukraine with Russia without EU representatives being in the room:

Statement issued by the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, France, Germany, Poland, Spain and United Kingdom.

We are ready to enhance our support for Ukraine. We commit to its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s war of aggression.

We share the goal to keep supporting Ukraine until a just, comprehensive and lasting peace is reached. A peace that guarantees the interest of Ukraine and our own. We are looking forward to discussing the way ahead together with our American allies.

Our shared objectives should be to put Ukraine in a position of strength. Ukraine and Europe must be part of any negotiations. Ukraine should be provided with strong security guarantees. A just and lasting peace in Ukraine is a necessary condition for a strong transatlantic security.

We recall that the security of the European continent is our common responsibility. We are therefore working together to strengthen our collective defence capabilities.

It's hard to read this and not think this is a declaration that if the US is going to soften its presence or withdrawal from NATO, the EU and UK are preparing to fend for themselves. For decades the EU has ceded economic power to the US in exchange for military protection. A change to this world order is huge, and who knows what the consequences will be.

The future of the world is shifting away from the United States and it's only month 2 of four years of the current administration. It is wild that the economic and military order forged in the aftermath of World War 2 may fall apart in a single lifetime. The future may leave the US behind and birth something new. Hard to say if it will be better or worse at this point, but it sure feels like it is accelerating.

I'm trying to assemble a new page, one that monitors all the changes happening in the world that shift our baseline for what is normal, things that would have been insane, or triggered months of news reports, a decade ago. This definitely will be on there.