Europe

For those outside of the loop, this US pawn worked for Blackrock, this reaction is wholly unsurprising.

"this is not the time to comment on the legality of the recent actions." ...

Relationship status: it’s complicated

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89lys%C3%A9e_Treaty

Just two months after the signing of the friendship treaty, a new controversy between France and West Germany occurred. President de Gaulle intended the treaty to make West Germany distance itself and eventually separate itself from its American protector. He saw West Germany (and the other member states of the European Economic Community) as vassalized by Washington. The treaty was notable in that it made no mention of the United States, United Kingdom, NATO, or the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).[9]

However, after US President John F. Kennedy expressed his displeasure about this to the West German ambassador to the United States, the Bundestag ratified the treaty with a preamble which called on France and West Germany to pursue tight cooperation with the United States; the eventual admission of the United Kingdom to the EEC; the achievement of a free trade accord in the framework of the GATT; and for the West's military integration in NATO under US leadership.[10] This effectively emptied the Treaty of any sense (in Gaullist understanding) and put end to General de Gaulle's hopes of building the EEC into a counterweight to the US and the USSR. "The Germans are behaving like pigs. They are putting themselves completely at the Americans' service. They're betraying the spirit of the Franco-German Treaty. And they're betraying Europe."[11] Later, in 1965, the General told his closest aides behind closed doors: "The Germans had been my greatest hope; they are my greatest disappointment."[12]

This shit has been going on since 1963...

I mean, it is embarrassing but the strategy is clear here. Don't piss off Daddy in hope to prolong the support for Ukraine (or preventing the support for Russia).

The EU and especially Germany has been grabbed by the nuts by the speed the US is leaving the show in Europe. Germany is doing as much for building up the military as the German society can take, it was admired for this strategy some time ago.

But they need a couple of more years to gain real independence (if they succeed). And for this time, they are vulnerable.

I see the hipocrisy, sure, but I don't think it's just stupid, but a strategy. I am genuinely interested, what would you guys do?

Same post when Greenland's taken presumably?

Legally trivial, morally complex and very much dependant on the outcome.

"It's complex"

translation: "It's very simple, it was illegal. But I won't ever say it. That's my job, you see."

Can't wait to see what all those spineless politicians will say when Trump appoints a Governor of Venezuela.

Isn't the legal classification is complex some diplomatic version of you fucked up, but we're ready to believe your lawyer?

Adding an acceptability benchmark to it, feel like preety critical considering the strong tie between US and Germany.

I do realise we are vulnerable right now because we let the US handle everything security related. And now we're paying the price for it, but is appeasement really the proper strategy here?

As an American, it's complex in that it's definitely illegal, but it went faster than expected and we aren't really in a "just put them back and apologize" situation. So now what?

Merz is mentally ill and needs therapy. The narcissistic p.o.s. is not fit to do the job he was elected to do. Sadly, most of the Germans are dumb enough to not see a problem with that.

/a German