This has been the week of Davos, but the once cosy atmosphere of international consensus that yearly descends on the Swiss Alps has been shattered by the meteor of Donald Trump’s foreign policy.
The US President’s ambition to take over Greenland has struck at the heart of our leaders’ post-war understanding of sovereignty and the international rule of law. Trump has torn off the veil that concealed the fact that the entire security of Europe depends on the United States, and that means THEY, or should I say HE, calls the shots.
There are good questions to be asked about whether Trump’s undermining of US alliances actually benefits America in the long-term, but what I wanted to understand in this episode is how we got to this point.
My guest, who barely needs introducing, is Konstantin Kisin, co-host of the hugely successful Triggernometry podcast, and his analysis is clear. Trump is a symptom of the break-up of the Western alliance, not its cause. The cause is, in fact, here at home; in the complacency and stupidity of European leaders who have destroyed their own economies, their own militaries and their own social cohesion, rendering us weaker and less reliable as allies. Enjoy the episode!
00:00 – Introduction
00:42 – What happened at Davos?
06:22 – Did Europe’s troubles come from America?
13:01 – The difference between Americans and Europeans
20:49 – Why did European conservatism crumble?
26:02 – What happens to countries that are weak and powerless?
28:23 – Konstantin’s policy prescription for Britain
35:45 – Fixing Britain’s immigration policy
38:07 – Can Britain’s culture be changed?
42:05 – The next election is Britain’s last chance
Thumbnail credit: Picture of Donald Trump by Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0
Credit to : David Starkey Talks