Since 1963, the Munich Security Conference has featured numerous controversial speeches. In 2007, Vladimir Putin declared that Russia would not accept anyone else’s domination in the new world order. But the speech given by US Vice President JD Vance probably broke all the past records for controversial speeches. His speech basically broke the current world order. The unity that the world has seen between Europe and America is about to end. What this division between Europe and America will lead to in the future is now one of the hot topics in world politics.
Sometimes a speech makes a clear message. JD Vance’s twenty-two-minute speech at the security conference was full of diplomacy. He distorted the trauma of Europe on European democracy and fascism. But what was most noticeable was the huge gap between the values of most Europeans and the Trump administration. Until now, the difference in military spending or the difference in Europe and America’s thoughts on the future threat from Russia was considered the reason for the division between the two sides. But Vance’s speech indicated that the situation was more serious. In fact, there was a fundamental difference between the social structures of the two sides. There is no room to think that Vance is talking cheaply about a cultural war. This is due to his complete disregard for the military conflict, which is a matter of life and death. In the speech, the populist right was called to go to war so that they could seize power in Europe. He also assured help from the city’s new sheriff.
To the populist right, Vance said that under Donald Trump, we will protect your right to express your opinion even if we do not agree with your views. Vance claims that Russia and China are not the biggest threat to Europe, but the danger lies within Europe. He says that a collusive elite is using the judicial system to maintain its power and destroy freedom of speech. Based on scant intelligence, they declared the Romanian election illegal and are trying to escape from issues of legitimate public concern, such as mass immigration. Through this, they have isolated the people from the political debate.
At the end of his speech, he suggested that Germany should take down the firewall to give legitimacy to the populists. He warned that if this is not done, Germany may not survive because a democracy cannot survive if its voters are told that their concerns, their hopes, and their pleas for help are all nonsense.
Vance portrayed Europe as a continent that has lost its direction. He questioned why the security conference was discussing a defense budget when it was not clear what they were trying to protect. He said that it was clear who they were protecting against, but it was not yet clear why. Then Vance made that strong statement. Vance said that if you continue to run away from your own voters, America will not be able to do anything for you. Not only that, he asked the American people who elected me and President Trump, Can you do anything for them without us? He said that if you are going to do anything meaningful in the coming years, you will have to take the democratic mandate.
Vance said that for years we have been told that everything we fund and support is done in the interests of our shared democratic values. Addressing Europe, he said that the values on which this continent won victory over evil forces were why the victors of the Cold War abandoned their values.
His message was clear, even if not directly; he pursued his views from his own lens. NATO was originally formed in the name of the US effort to protect common Western values during the Cold War. But if these values are no longer common, then NATO no longer has a moral basis. Vance identified cultural pluralism, globalization, immigration, gay rights, and liberal policies as potential flaws in Europe. According to him, the relative values of the elites of Russia and Europe have sought to be neutral in American democracy.
For years, prominent US activists such as Steve Bannon have been sympathetic to Putin’s ideologue Alexander Dugin. Bannon has met Dugin and praised him. They both believe that the European elite is promoting a globalist ideology that denies the existence of dissenting cultures and traditions. But Bannon’s views are now echoed in the White House itself. Vance and prominent activists want to get out of the current US-Europe relationship. Vance’s speech suggests that the reason for the exit is not the cost burden, American isolationism, disagreements over Putin’s loyalty, or tariffs, but ideological divisions.
European leaders tried to respond to Vance at the security conference, but they could not escape reality. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz reminded Vance that he himself had visited the former Dachau concentration camp and vowed that such unspeakable crimes against humanity would never happen again. Scholz said Germany had a historical responsibility to fight against groups whose leaders were rooted in Nazi ideology. The firewall is not about censoring the AfD. The aim is to refuse to work with them within the government.
Scholz said that the vast majority of the population of our country has stood up against those who glorify and legitimize criminal nationalist social discourse. He said that the AfD political party emerged from those nationalist socialist idealists. The holders of the ideology are trying to trivialize things like major crimes and crimes against humanity. With this statement, Soules tried to answer Vance with dignity. But the words of CDU leader Friedrich Merz were not so restrained. He said that Germany protects freedom of speech but not fake news. There are legal restrictions and independent courts in place to prevent inciting hatred and offensive speech. He also said that we would never kick a news agency out of our chancellor’s office.
The divide became even more pronounced when the discussion turned to the Ukraine issue. The discussion revolved around familiar questions such as delays in the delivery of air systems to the Europeans, the slowdown in weapons production, and Europe’s limitations in making security commitments to Ukraine. The issue of what will happen to Europe’s security due to Trump’s aid cuts was not even allowed to come up in the discussion. Zelensky essentially confirmed the collapse of the transatlantic alliance. He said the US vice president had made it clear that the old relationship between Europe and America that had existed for decades was coming to an end. From now on, the decisions will be different, and Europe will have to accept that. He cited recent talks with Trump, stating that Trump never once mentioned the need for Europe at the negotiating table. This suggests a lot. America no longer aids Europe as it once did. He added that some in Europe may still not fully understand what is happening in Washington. Does America need the European market? Even as an ally, I do not understand that. Europe as a whole must unite to provide a concrete answer to this. A dozen different voices will not do.
Zelensky asserts that we need confidence in our strength so that others do not have the means to do so without respecting Europe’s strength. This will not be possible without building a European army. I repeat, Europe will have its own armed forces. But the reality is that Europeans are divided on the issues that Vance mentioned. In this situation, it remains to be seen whether European countries will come forward at all to follow Zelensky’s advice or whether doubts remain.
