Even with a population of about 450 million people and a considerable economic output, the European Union faces a structural dependency on the United States. The US has significant leverage in key sectors like defense, finance, and digital infrastructure. For example, Europe's defense capability is currently hard to imagine without US support in reconnaissance and nuclear deterrence.
In the digital sphere too, US corporations dominate the value chain for 'Cloud-Diensten' and Artificial Intelligence, which mainly puts Europe in the role of a consumer. At the same time, economists like 'David McWilliams' analyze the fundamental importance of money for human civilization. In his work 'Money', he describes money not just as a means of exchange, but as a social catalyst that can shape societies or cause them to collapse during instability.
This historical perspective is complemented by looking back at the introduction of the Euro cash, which marked a historical upheaval in the European monetary architecture with the so-called 'Starterkits' in 2001. For 'Deutschland', a mixed picture is emerging in the meantime. While US economists like 'Kenneth Rogoff' warn of economic decline and call for reforms in bureaucracy and energy prices, the fundamental capability of German industry is still rated as robust. Nevertheless, transatlantic bloc formation and technological dependencies are increasing the pressure on European politics to develop independent 'strategische Autonomie'.
