{"id":40164,"date":"2025-10-21T12:27:56","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T10:27:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/badania.uew.pl\/?p=40164"},"modified":"2026-01-26T13:20:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T12:20:14","slug":"europe-on-its-own-feet-what-does-tougher-us-rhetoric-mean-prof-przemyslaw-skulski","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/badania.uew.pl\/en\/europe-on-its-own-feet-what-does-tougher-us-rhetoric-mean-prof-przemyslaw-skulski\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe on its own feet: what does tougher US rhetoric mean?\u00a0Prof. Przemys\u0142aw Skulski"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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How should Europe read talk of a \u201cwar ministry\u201d, the \u201cstrongest army in the world\u201d, and a more transactional approach to alliances? In an interview for Radio Wroc\u0142aw, Professor Przemys\u0142aw Skulski <\/a>(UEW) sets out what this rhetoric could mean for Europe and for Poland. The emphasis is on language, policy choices and practical consequences.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What is behind the tougher language from Washington?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At the core is rhetoric: a way of shaping the message for both a domestic US audience and the wider world. Phrases about fitness tests, \u201ccleaning up\u201d the army, ending \u201cthe diversity game\u201d, or even creating a \u201cwar ministry\u201d are designed to mobilise and signal resolve.
Rhetoric is not policy. Strong words do not automatically translate into structural reform. As Professor Skulski notes, effective military training does not rely on \u201cshouting corporals\u201d; there are professional ways to build discipline and readiness without recourse to violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Europe: less comfort, more self-reliance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The interview\u2019s central point is clear: Europe must take its security architecture more seriously. With \u201cAmerica First\u201d back in the vocabulary\u2014and calls for Europeans to shoulder more of the burden, including support for Ukraine\u2014strategic autonomy should move from aspiration to project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThis is another signal that Europe must look after its own security,\u201d says Professor Przemys\u0142aw Skulski.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStrategic autonomy\u201d means the ability to plan, fund and conduct security action\u2014military and civilian\u2014on Europe\u2019s own terms. It spans the defence industry, supply chains, workforce skills, and coordinated political decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transactions instead of presence? Implications for the defence market<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A more transactional model could mean less permanent US military presence and more arms sales to allies. Commercially, that logic is sound. But there is a flip side: if Europe takes rearmament seriously, it may expand its own defence industry and, over time, reduce purchases from the United States. That would create real long-term competition on the global arms market.
Procurement never happens in a vacuum. Alliances and economic interests intersect, and buying decisions are strategic choices. Transactionalism might deliver short-term gains while eroding long-term allied cohesion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planning under uncertainty<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

US politics remains unpredictable, from NATO statements to judgements on foreign leaders. Planners should therefore work with scenarios: increased US engagement; status quo; withdrawal of presence with pure transactional ties. Each scenario needs a corresponding action map for states and institutions.
For Europe this means: strengthening own capabilities, aligning procurement and training standards, securing supply chains, and running a coherent information policy that builds societal resilience\u2014understood as the capacity to withstand shocks and return to normal quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Africa, China and \u201cglobal interests\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Will the US truly step back from non-European regions where it has interests, for example in Africa? The paradox, as Professor Skulski notes, is that military presence has often protected economic interests (e.g. raw materials). Pulling back could leave the field to other players, notably China. Much will depend on shifting political choices, which in recent years have changed quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does this mean for Poland?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First, read the messages\u2014do not be led by emotion. Tough language is not yet policy.
Second, accelerate European cooperation in security and defence industry, from common standards to R&D projects.
Third, strengthen civil resilience: education, crisis communication, and the society\u2019s digital and information skills.
Finally, foster a competent public debate that distinguishes slogans from action and short-term gains from long-term stability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Listen to the full discussion on Radio Wroc\u0142aw<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How should Europe read talk of a \u201cwar ministry\u201d, the 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