Good that Trump’s security strategy scared Europe, David Petraeus says
Gen. David Petraeus, Former CIA Director, Fmr. Central Command and American commander in Iraq.
Adam Jeffery | CNBC
White House new national security strategy Last week, he spooked Europe by warning that the region faced “civilization erasure” and questioning whether it could remain America’s geopolitical partner.
The document shocked allies on the continent by criticizing its leaders as “weak” and harshly criticized the region’s stance on immigration, democracy and freedom of expression, while adding that its economic and military power was also diminishing.
“It is not clear whether some European countries will have strong enough economies and militaries to remain reliable allies.” The organization said, adding that the region suffers from a lack of self-confidence. The document also called for the United States to restore “strategic stability” with Russia despite its war against Ukraine.
But former CIA Director and four-star U.S. Army general David Petraeus told CNBC that it’s not a bad thing for European countries to get a wake-up call to take care of their defense and security.
The strategy is to “sort of go after the Europeans, but frankly some Europeans needed to be gone after because I’ve seen four different presidents encourage the Europeans to do more in their own defense, and now that’s actually happening,” he told CNBC’s Dan Murphy in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
Petraeus said President Donald Trump has been “very, very important” about Europeans spending more on defense.
“He enabled them to do what they should have done years ago,” Petraeus said. He noted that after sustained pressure from the Trump administration, NATO’s European members agreed earlier this year to increase defense spending to 5% of their gross domestic product.
‘Putin will not give up’
Petraeus’ comments come as diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine continue, with U.S. officials in talks with their Russian and Ukrainian counterparts about peace proposals in recent weeks.
Both Russia, Ukraine and their European allies have supported different peace plans with conflicting demands and “red lines”. The biggest obstacles to peace remain disagreements over post-war security guarantees for Ukraine and Russia’s demands that Kiev cede the eastern region of Donbas.
Washington is reportedly urging both sides to reach a deal before Christmas, but there are doubts that this will be possible. Meanwhile, Russia Europe and Ukraine appear to be enjoying the increasing pressure from Washington.
Petraeus said he had little faith that Russia could agree on a peace plan, with Putin showing little sign of compromise on war goals such as territorial control, regime change and a “demilitarized” Ukraine with no prospect of NATO membership.
“I am encouraged by an effort by the United States, which President Trump personally supports in many ways and his direct negotiators, to end the war. I am not encouraged by Moscow’s response,” Petraeus said. he said.
“Vladimir Putin continues to reiterate that his goals are the maximalist goals he has embraced from the beginning, which essentially denies Ukraine’s independence. He wants to replace President Zelenskyy with a pro-Russian president… He wants to demilitarize Ukraine [and] … he wants to be given a place in the most fortified area of Ukraine,” he added.
Petraeus added that Putin “will not come back.”
frozen assets
Ukraine’s European allies are seeking ways to continue financing its war against Russia and are also considering its post-war reconstruction, which is likely to cost over $500 billion. According to the United Nationsand Russian reparations.
The EU is believed to be close to a deal to mobilize the bulk of Russian state assets worth an estimated 210 billion euros (about $244 billion) currently frozen in European financial institutions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels, Belgium, on December 9, 2025.
Presidency of Ukraine | Anatolia | Getty Images
But there are concerns about the legal ramifications and potential retaliation from Moscow; The head of Russia’s security council warned last week that using Russian assets would amount to a justification for war.
Petraeus said it would be a “game changer” if the EU continued to use frozen Russian reserves.
“We had heard of many game-changing things before. I never believed them. But… $200 billion, or even 100 billion euros of money for Ukraine would change the rules of the game. This would solve their financial and economic problems for a few years,” he said.
