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Politics

May 22, 2026 Yanis Varoufakis

Some claim that the threats Europe is facing, especially after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, can create the momentum toward political union that the euro crisis and then the pandemic failed to generate. Right or wrong, one thing is clear: a functional defense union requires political union, and NATO's existence is inimical to it.

ATHENS—The idea of a European Defense Union is gaining ground across Europe. But so long as NATO continues to dominate Europe’s security, the prospect of building its own effective defense union will remain elusive. To become sovereign in defense matters (and more generally), Europe must terminate NATO—a prospect as unlikely as it is necessary.