The Foreign Desk Munich Security Conference special: Will the transatlantic alliance survive?
9 snips
Feb 21, 2026 Guest
Benedetta Berti
Guest
Antti Hakkanen
Guest
Tom Tugendhat
Guest
Kurt Volker
Guest
Gabrielius Landsbergis
Benedetta Berti, NATO Parliamentary Assembly chief, on alliance cohesion and hybrid threats. Antti Hakkanen, Finland’s defence minister, on F-35s, mines and territorial defence. Tom Tugendhat, ex-security minister, on transatlantic ties and Ukraine. Kurt Volker, former US negotiator, on deterrence and settlement scenarios. Gabrielius Landsbergis, strategist, on European strategy and NATO’s role. They debate alliance strain, Greenland, and Ukraine’s future.
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Europe Needs Its Own Strategic Manifesto
- Europeans are waking up to the need for a distinct strategic narrative rather than relying on the US to define the transatlantic relationship.
- Gabrielius Landsbergis argues for a European 'manifesto' to articulate its own version of the partnership and interests.
US Messaging Shifted Toward Transactional Interests
- Rubio's omission of Ukraine signalled the US is increasingly guided by transactional interests rather than shared values.
- Landsbergis warns Europe must plan without assuming US priorities will match its own on Ukraine.
Shared Goals, Different Paths For Ukraine
- Kurt Volker says US and Europe share the goal of a sovereign, secure Ukraine but differ on NATO membership timing and approaches.
- He describes security assurances and a coalition-of-the-willing as the current, shared path forward.