The West's Dangerous Self-Delusions & the Conflict With Russia

Professor Glenn Diesen Interviewed by Weltwoche

We did not reach a mutually acceptable post-Cold War settlement and thus failed to overcome zero-sum bloc politics. Our agreements for an inclusive pan-European European security architecture based on indivisible security were betrayed, and we redivided the continent by instead expanding NATO. The rivalry over where to draw the new dividing lines of Europe is tearing the continent apart, while the deeply divided societies between NATO and Russia become vulnerable to civil war and proxy war as they are compelled to choose between “us” or “them”. Navigating our way forward will require a clear understanding of competing security concerns and the preparedness to pursue compromise and pragmatic solutions. '

Unfortunately, we have succumbed to self-delusion in the West. All great power rivalry is reduced and dumbed-down to a struggle between liberal democracy and authoritarianism. This simplistic heuristics compels self-delusion and the failure to maximise our own security. Peace is no longer achieved by mitigating the security competition, rather it requires defeating the world’s largest nuclear power to establish a hegemonic peace. The absurdity requires strict narrative control, which implies that facts and reality must not be allowed to disrupt the narrative. The people pushing their narratives are convinced that they are virtuous, even as they are making Europe less secure, less prosperous, and less independent.

I was interviewed by Weltwoche about this topic: