Let's take current events topical to your part of the world.
I see bad days ahead for Europe and the EU as the continental government in Brussels continues to mismanage its relationship with the Russians while they kowtow to the uniparty establishment in Washington. They're isolating themselves from a massive trading partner with a land border over what are ostensibly minor issues. Alexei Navalny is not worth souring relations with the Russian Federation. It's a total fool's errand conducted by out of touch bureaucrats that aren't thinking of the needs of their people, only the needs of their fundraisers. Be it French farmers or German manufacturers, there is a market there that wants their goods and yet an antiquated Cold War mindset is causing the EU to lash out in an incongruous fashion that is only going to hurt the mainland moving forward.
Furthermore, by continuing to follow the lead of Washington the EU and Europe as a whole is holding itself back from a greater destiny. That destiny being a truly independent player in the upcoming great power political game. Yet again the continent is setting itself up to be the second fiddle to another power. Europe under the EU is so much more than simply a client state and the independent nations need to demand greater autonomy from the central power in Brussels in order to develop a more stable and healthy union.
The same political splits at play in the United States play out between Eastern and Western Europe and there has to be more of an understanding that just because something is being done differently does not mean that is is being done incorrectly. The ideological split within the EU's major blocs continues to be a source of weakness, just as the ideological split in the United States represents a major weakness. In the case of the EU, leadership must work harder to respect the differences of opinion in Eastern Europe or at least sideline those issues and focus more on meaningful and substantive issues of trade and diplomacy. And they need to stop playing Washington's stupid games of whacking Russia for issues rooted in the minds of foreign politicians and leaders. Russia isn't going to retaliate against America for the Europeans stepping in and abiding by America's illogical crusade against Russia; the Russians are going to retaliate against the Europeans for this and then turn further Eastward in their pursuits for trade and partnership.
And mark my words: if they continue down this path eventually the EU is going to be left holding the bag because the Americans aren't going to be antagonistic toward Russia forever. The American people and Russian people are natural allies but for political circumstance. But politics change and when that decision is made to start rebuilding bridges, the Europeans are going to be the last to know because they are not acting of their own volition and are merely following. Europe should want to be master of its own destiny and become a third pole of power in global politics in the upcoming paradigm. They have the means and capacity to do so, but not the will.
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