America's plot to tie Europe to its war wagon misfires

美国“绑架”欧洲的算盘打不响

Source
China Military Online
Editor
Li Wei
Time
2022-06-07 00:50:40

聂舒翼

By Nie Shuyi

当地时间6月1日,德国总理朔尔茨宣布,德国将向乌克兰提供IRIS-T防空系统,并同意向乌克兰运送7门PzH2000自行榴弹炮。不过,与美国总统拜登在5月31日宣布向乌克兰提供“海马斯”火箭弹发射系统不同,朔尔茨在向乌克兰提供进攻性重武器的问题上仍表态谨慎。尽管美欧仍在源源不断地向乌克兰提供军火支持,但在如何支持乌克兰的问题上,美欧内部的裂痕已经无法隐藏。

On June 1, local time, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that Berlin will provide the IRIS-T air defense system to Ukraine and agreed to transport seven PzH2000self-propelled howitzers to the country. But unlike US President Biden, who announced on May 31 that the US would provide the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) to Ukraine, Scholz remained cautious about the provision of aggressive heavy-duty weapons. Although both Washington and Brussels are continuing their support for Ukraine in the form of providing weapons and ammunition, their divergence on how to support the warring country can no longer be concealed.

冲突至今,美国已向乌克兰提供了价值数百亿美元的武器装备和军事援助。紧邻俄罗斯的波兰、立陶宛、拉脱维亚等国,也积极“捐钱捐物”。而法德等国在军援乌克兰的问题上则显得更加谨慎。

Since the conflict broke out, the US has provided tens of billions of dollars to Ukraine in the form of weapons, equipment, and military aid. Countries close to Russia, including Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, also donated cash and materials actively, whereas France and Germany seem more cautious when it comes to military assistance to Kyiv.

《华尔街日报》称,截至目前,德国这个人口超过8300万的欧洲最大经济体向乌克兰提供了2亿欧元左右的军事援助,这比人口仅133万的爱沙尼亚还少。相较于重武器,德国更多是提供步兵武器、医疗装备以及自行火炮等轻武器。而法国也只援助了12门榴弹炮,没有提供坦克或防空设施。

According to Wall Street Journal, Germany, Europe’s largest economy with a population of more than 83 million, has provided around EUR 200 million worth of military aid to Ukraine so far, less than what was offered by Estonia, a country with a population of only 1.33 million. In terms of weapons, Germany provided more light weapons such as infantry weapons, medical equipment, and self-propelled howitzers instead of heavy weapons, and France only provided 12 howitzer guns, and no tanks or air defense facilities.

跨大西洋联盟内部的这种不同步表明,尽管各方都想借俄乌冲突来“打压”俄罗斯,但各自却仍打着各自的“小算盘”。

The out-sync within the cross-Atlantic alliance shows that while all parties want to keep Russia down through the Russia-Ukraine conflict, they don’t see eye-to-eye with each other, and each has its own ax to grind.

对美国而言,挑动俄乌冲突实际上是过去十几年美国在欧洲地缘政治战略的延续,其根本目的就是为了最大限度压缩俄罗斯的地缘政治空间。自冷战结束以来,美国就不断推动北约东扩。同时,美国还在乌克兰、格鲁吉亚等国挑动颜色革命,怂恿这些国家提出加入北约的申请。这些举动都极大压缩了俄罗斯的战略安全空间,损害了俄罗斯的国家安全。

For the US, instigating the Russia-Ukraine conflict was just the continuation of the geopolitical strategy that it has implemented in Europe for the past decade and more, with the ultimate goal of compressing Russia’s geopolitical space to the largest extent. Ever since the Cold War ended, Washington has been pushing for the eastward expansion of NATO. At the same time, it has incited the Color Revolution in Ukraine, Georgia and other countries, and egged them on to apply to join NATO. All these moves have squeezed the space for Russia’s strategic security and undermined its national security.

对中东欧和波罗的海三国等在地理上临近俄罗斯的国家而言,他们积极支持乌克兰更多是出于自身历史和地缘安全考虑,比如波兰、立陶宛等国,在对待俄罗斯的问题上既有历史上的“世仇”,也有现实地缘安全的担忧。

For Central and East European countries and the three Baltic states, which are geographically adjacent to Russia, their support for Ukraine is mostly out of historical and geo-security considerations. Poland and Lithuania, for instance, have a “feud” with Russia historically and geo-security concerns realistically.

而对法德等国来说,当前他们的担忧已经从地缘问题转移到经济问题上。俄乌冲突引发的国际原油、天然气、粮食等大宗商品价格飞涨,推高了全球通胀风险,令包括法德在内的各国民众面临钱包缩水、开支剧增的困境法德等国担忧向乌克兰提供先进武器可能会延长俄乌冲突,损害本就脆弱的经济。

France and Germany, on the other hand, are more worried about economic issues than geopolitical ones at the moment. The price of bulk commodities like crude oil, natural gas and grain is shooting through the roof because of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. That threatens global inflation, which means people in all countries, including France and Germany, will feel the pinch and tighten their belt. Therefore, Paris and Berlin worry that providing advanced weapons to Ukraine might prolong the ongoing conflict and add another blow to the already fragile economy.

美欧分歧的暴露也再度证明,美国无法用俄乌冲突绑架世界。德国虽然在重压之下迈出了一小步,但这一小步也并未踩实;拜登5月的亚洲行仍未能说服印度加入自己主导的“反俄大合唱”;美国的海湾及中东盟友至今仍拒绝加入对俄制裁行列。更不用说,从非洲到拉美的广大第三世界国家自冲突开始就坚持独立自主,拒绝“选边站队”。

The US-EU divergence also reveals that Washington cannot hijack the world through the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Germany, under much pressure, has taken a small step forward, not without reservations though. Biden during his Asian trip in May failed to convince India of joining its anti-Russia chorus, and America’s Gulf and Middle Eastern allies are still refusing to join the sanctions. Besides, countries of the third world – from Africa to Latin America – have refused to take sides ever since the onset of the conflict.

美国若真像宣称的那样希望俄乌实现和平,就该停止“火上浇油”“拱火生事”,不再继续刺激局势向更危险的方向发展,真正履行起应该担当的劝和促谈的责任,尽早结束这场美国自己导演的地缘政治乱局。

If the US really hopes to see peace between Russia and Ukraine, as it claimed, it should stop pouring oil on flames and prodding the situation in a more dangerous direction. Rather, it should do what it is obligated to – facilitate peace talks between the conflicting parties and put an end to this geopolitical kerfuffle that it initiated in the first place.

Editor's Note: This article is originally published on haiwainet.cn, and is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information, ideas or opinions appearing in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.

 

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