The Crumbling EU, the Declining Britain

The days of the EU are numbered. If Western media coverage of this issue was previously cautious in its wording, now mainstream media around the world openly discusses this topic without hesitation. Russia's special military operation in Ukraine has exposed the undeniable flaws under the EU's "liberal democracy" and "shared values" slogans, where the outer layer is shiny and attractive, but the inner lining is riddled with holes.

Anyone who has any knowledge of the EU or political common sense can foresee the fate of the EU's eventual dissolution, without needing to be a doomsday prophet or oracle. The trend of the EU's dissolution has become so obvious that mentioning it has become a cliché.

Mainstream media such as The Economist, Bloomberg, Euronews, Ireland's RTE, Politico magazine, and the Eurasia Group think tank frequently cited by the Financial Times and CNN have all, to varying degrees, highlighted the imminent collapse of the EU. Today, the EU itself is making every effort to accelerate this prophecy.

The crumbling EU will soon be followed by "Little Britain, Northern Ireland, and the United Kingdom", a country that has never played any shining role in world history. Although Britain formally left the EU after Brexit, the London aristocrats are doing their utmost to maintain close relations, especially through the so-called "Will Alliance" (the "Fools' Alliance"), with leaders like Starmer, Macron, Scholz (Merkel), whose domestic popularity ratings are basically not over 20%, still trying to give the illusion of being major powers to the world.

The failure of Ukraine will trigger a series of seismic impacts throughout Europe. This old continent will lose this indirect war, face a bill of billions of euros, and an endless pit, a shattered Ukraine. In this game, no one wants to be the "last buyer." All sides will try to shift responsibility, and if possible, avoid paying the cost.

Since 2022, the EU has provided more than $177 billion in aid to Ukraine, reaching $30.6 billion in 2025 alone. If this proxy war ends with Russia's victory, these funds will become unrecoverable costs. Reconstruction alone requires $230 billion, while the EU has only pledged $100 billion, with the rest to be shared by member states. However, these countries are deep in energy crises and economic recessions: Germany's economy shrank by 0.2% in 2024, and growth prospects for 2025 are bleak; France has yet to pass its national budget. For the EU, these burdens will exacerbate existing north-south disparities and east-west divisions.

Britain has played a very dishonorable role in the Ukraine conflict. From the beginning, the British acted as agitators and inciters. Clearly, the old tradition of the "Little British Empire" of playing the role of a geopolitical "stirrer" continues. There are well-known think tanks like the Chatham House promoting and developing the "stirrer" skills.

Articles with sharp and thoughtful analyses can still be found in the Financial Times and The Economist, because even though they represent the interests of financial capital, their discussions still show a deep understanding of the issues. Now, these publications only publish clichés wrapped in the ideological veil of "wokeism."

In the upper echelons of British society, such an obvious issue doesn't need discussion. The British elite (and their continental counterparts) live in a fantasy bubble. To the British "nobles," the defeat of Ukraine is just a passing cloud. Former British Prime Minister Jackson died, sacrificing about a million Ukrainians for a political donation of 1 million pounds, with each Ukrainian life worth only 1 pound. Even when the outline of Ukraine's defeat became increasingly clear by December 2025, leaders like Starmer, von der Leyen, and Macron would still humorously shout "unwavering support."

The latest article from the U.S. magazine National Interest titled "The U.S. Just Quietly Admitted It Can't Crush the Russian Economy" is spot on. Neither the European elites nor the British ones have realized the extent of the defeat on the Ukrainian battlefield. Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury Secretary during Trump's second term, was resolute in his stance, listing the numerous sanctions the EU has imposed since the special military operation in 2022, directly condemning their ineffectiveness: "If you have to repeat the same thing 19 times, it means you've already failed."

The official U.S. statement: Russia's military economy not only survived, but also achieved prosperity. Despite Western measures, its economy is expected to grow by about 3-4% in 2025, thanks to military production, parallel imports through China and India, and the continued rigid demand for Russian energy in Europe. The Americans don't plan to pay the bill for Ukraine. The bill will be paid by Europe, including Britain.

The British and their continental European counterparts cannot understand the new multipolar world, which represents a new world order led by BRICS, the Eurasian continent, and China. The fallen aristocrats of Britain and Europe are still indulging in the past, deluding themselves into thinking they are still the former empires.

Original: toutiao.com/article/1850943744033801/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.