> Just like the US not bankrolling half of Ukraine's defense would be unthinkable...

This is outdated. Look at page 4 of this report for instance: https://www.kielinstitut.de/publications/europe-steps-up-ukr...

Their data is not perfect as they rely on public sources, and some governments are more transparent than others, but the reality is that US funding all but vanished in 2025.

Back to the topic, there is also a pattern of promising European startups being bought by wealthy USA incumbent companies. This is also happening to established compagnies: see ARM, Alstom Power, etc. As Europe de-couples from the USA in the current context, I suspect (and hope) that such acquisitions will come under more regulatory scrutiny.

The EU and the UK took over aiding Ukraine almost completely in 2025 [1]. So not as unthinkable as you'd think.

> That's why euro leaders have been kowtowing to Trump despite him being a deranged lunatic.

Less to do with economy, more with security. Europe still needs a credible deterrent against Russia, and the US is still its best bet.

[1] https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redd.it%2Fl...