Could Europe Defend Itself Without the US? - The US Split, Rearmament & Defence Independence

Sponsored by Odoo - https://www.odoo.com/r/21F For three quarters of a century, the NATO alliance has been a fixture of European and North American security. Now however, the allies are embroiled in a very public split and the call by some European leaders has been for more defence independence from the USA. Today, we look at some of the military capabilities the rest of NATO have, what independence might mean, and some of the economic, technical, and political barriers to achieving it. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/PerunAU Reading and Sourcing (Incomplete - to be updated): NATO expenditure and active personnel figures: https://www.nato.int/nato_static_fl2014/assets/pdf/2024/6/pdf/240617-def-exp-2024-en.pdf https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_223304.htm Platform estimates pulled from sources including Military Balance 2024 Italy calls for US-Europe summit https://www.reuters.com/world/italy-calls-summit-between-us-europeans-says-divisions-make-west-weaker-2025-02-28/ Reporting on aftermath of Whitehouse meeting https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9n5jq42pdo Merz statements & reporting https://www.dw.com/en/german-chancellor-candidate-merz-slams-musk-over-afd-stance/a-71181470 https://www.dw.com/en/friedrich-merz-says-new-german-government-must-make-quick-decisions/video-71749485 https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/feb/26/friedrich-merz-us-europe-german-election-victory-nato-defence https://www.politico.eu/article/friedrich-merz-germany-election-united-states-donald-trump-nato/ https://www.trtworld.com/europe/european-unity-needed-to-counter-us-russia-interference-germanys-merz-18268090 https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/merzs-conservatives-push-quick-coalition-talks-after-german-election-win-2025-02-24/ https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2024/12/30/leading-german-politicians-compare-elon-musk-to-vladimir-putin-over-afd-endorsement https://www.yahoo.com/news/germanys-merz-takes-aim-us-214826429.html Abrams sale to Romania https://www.defensenews.com/land/2023/11/09/state-dept-approves-25b-sale-of-abrams-tanks-to-romania/ Stock prices per google as at time of recording. Caveats & Comments: All normal caveats and comments apply. In particular – I would like to note as always that this material has been created for entertainment purposes and is not intended to be a complete or comprehensive examination of the topic in question and should not be relied upon to inform financial or other similar decisions. Any content relating to the conduct, views, activities or any aspect of any person or character in this video is included for entertainment purposes and does not represent an assertion of fact on those matters or any matters in relation to that person or character. Care has been taken in compiling data, quotes, and other inputs from various sources but errors can occur. Quotes and included data should be considered Timestamps: