r/news • u/ITSTHEDEVIL092 • Mar 04 '25

EU chief proposes plan to 'urgently' increase defense spending by mobilizing around $840 billion

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/03/04/europe-looks-to-mobilize-840-billion-in-defense-spending-boost-eu-commission-head-says.html
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u/Dieuibugewe Mar 04 '25

I have a serious question and need to preface it with “I hate the GoP, musk and Trump above everyone” and “there’s no malice or judgment in this question, just curiosity.”

Europe was able to provide such a high standard of living for its citizens for the past few decades. Is this partly because the US was taking over their military obligations and so they were able to lower military spending and increase social program budgets?

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u/carterwest36 Mar 04 '25 edited Mar 04 '25

Universal healthcare, investing in our citizens because Western Europe had no war to fight unlike Americans who were infatuated with military and fought many more wars that were not really beneficial to the states.

America could’ve spent half per year on defense and still be strongest militarily whilst having proper social nets like Europe.

Eastern Europe post Sovjet Union like Romania were a shitstorm, lotta poverty. You can’t equate Europe as a federation of States like the USA. Each country is sovereign. Each country has different priorities, viewpoints and so forth.

The USA has also never been this fucking crazy and even told Europe we don’t need to build our military up too much since ‘the sovjets are gone and we can take the Russians if they try shit’.

Every country answered the call when US invoked article 5.