EU Leaders Claim the U.S. Is Profiting off Ukraine War—at Their Expense
The relationship between the European Union and the United States is showing signs of strain, according to Politico, which writes that senior EU officials are “furious” with the Biden Administration and are accusing the U.S. of making bank off the Ukraine war while Europe suffers.
They claim that the U.S. is selling guns and gas at exorbitant prices, while the laughably-named Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)—Biden’s massive, inflationary climate, tax, and health care package—is threatening their industries at the same time Putin’s Ukraine war is choking their energy supply.
“The fact is, if you look at it soberly, the country that is most profiting from this war is the U.S. because they are selling more gas and at higher prices, and because they are selling more weapons,” one senior official told POLITICO.
This Hungarian Twitter account agreed:
Politico goes on to say that the comments by the senior officials were confirmed by leaders, diplomats, and ministers across the continent, who added that the nearly $400 billion in IRA green energy subsidies is causing businesses to relocate to America en masse. At the same time, the United States has been the biggest provider of military aid to Ukraine, ponying up $19 billion in armaments, and the Euros worry the U.S. is profiting handsomely.
“We are really at a historic juncture,” the senior EU official said, arguing that the double hit of trade disruption from U.S. subsidies and high energy prices risks turning public opinion against both the war effort and the transatlantic alliance. “America needs to realize that public opinion is shifting in many EU countries.”
In essence, they are accusing America of reverting to protectionist policies at their expense:
“The U.S. is following a domestic agenda, which is regrettably protectionist and discriminates against U.S. allies,” said Tonino Picula, the European Parliament’s lead person on the transatlantic relationship.
Some worry that the very alliance is in jeopardy. “The Inflation Reduction Act has changed everything,” one EU official said. “Is Washington still our ally or not?”
Fox News contributor Steve Milloy thinks the hubbub is just Europe asking for a handout:
Exacerbating the situation is Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine, which commenced nine months ago and has crippled energy supplies on the Continent and contributed to soaring inflation. Blackouts and rationing are predicted. The Kremlin and Vlad are likely having a good laugh over the EU-U.S. tensions as it serves their purposes.
The Europeans may have cause to blame the United States for some of their problems, but they should take a long look in the mirror as well. Their bizarre energy plan—reduce their own output and rely more and more on Russian gas—was a dangerous and ill-advised gambit that is now exacting a cost. Putin is basically able to play games with energy, doling it out if and when he sits fit, and he’s got Europe by the scruff of the neck.
So far, the EU’s complaints have fallen on deaf ears, as Biden not surprisingly didn’t seem to even know about the issue when asked about it:
At the G20 summit in Bali, EU officials reportedly asked Biden about the high gas prices, to which the American President ‘seemed unaware of the issue,’ according to the official who spoke with Politico.
‘The rise in gas prices in Europe is caused by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and Putin’s energy war against Europe, period,’ a spokesperson for Biden’s National Security Council told the outlet.
The alliance between the EU and the U.S. is historic and essential, especially when there are war-hungry, nuclear-armed dictators like Putin roaming around. The EU may have cause to complain about the IRA—because it’s a terrible act for both America and Europe on so many levels—but they need to hold themselves accountable as well. If they hadn’t crippled their own energy industries, they’d be in a much stronger position and wouldn’t have to come begging the U.S. for cheaper gas. (The U.S. is paying its own price for Biden’s maniacal attempt to ditch fossil fuels, but that’s another story.)
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