Donald Trump’s second inauguration is a watershed moment in history. It is no use to pretend otherwise and to hope that somehow “business as usual” can be maintained, albeit with some tweaks. Europe and the world have to brace themselves for a way of doing business that is much more in line with the times of nineteenth century British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston, who famously stated that Britain had neither perpetual allies nor enemies, only interests.

For Europe this means defining what our priorities are and making sure they are protected, even in the face of a US President who may no longer consider a stable and secure Europe to be a core American interest. First and foremost this means being seen by our friends and enemies – as well as by the myriad of nations that are neither – as having the capability of defending our interests. Because in this new world nice ideas and grand speeches will no longer be sufficient. The strength of a nation or of a block of nations, such as the EU, will be assessed by their capacity to project power, both economic, political and military. And in all of these fields the EU is sadly lacking.

These weaknesses are well known and there is no need to review them in detail. The problem is not so much that the EU is weak militarily, or that it is punching far below its potential diplomatically, or that it is behind on the technological front, the problem is whether there is actually the political and societal will to do something about these failings. Because the money, the brains and the potential are there – but are Europeans ready to stand up and fight once more for their way of life and their interests, or are we ultimately an old and tired civilisation that is ripe to be taken over by others, as has so often happened over the millenia?

This is the fundamental question at the heart of this blog and by writing it I wish to incite and contribute to this vital discussion.