The Ukrainian crisis is showing day after day the weakness of the current US administration headed by Biden in a way that confirms that the era of American hegemony is about to end. President Biden may have made many heroic statements ahead of the military operation in Ukraine, but as soon as Putin decided to opt for a military solution to get to the negotiating table, Biden withdrew from the battle, shamelessly failing the Ukrainian president. The situation provoked the world’s ridicule and the astonishment of the Ukrainian president, who did not have sufficient ability or experience to properly assess the political situation.
President Biden has managed the Ukraine crisis in the worst possible way, showing the whole world that he can deter Russia when the actual truth is certainly the opposite. The United States may have the ability to project its power anywhere in the world, but when dealing with another great power’s sphere of influence, its deterrence capacity is greatly diminished.
This is not the first time that the weakness of the United States against Russia has been shown. The reluctance of the United States to take a hostile decision toward Russia appeared before in 2014 when Putin annexed Crimea during the Obama administration. At the time, many scathing criticisms of the Obama administration were directed, but he was able to sidestep the situation and show the United States as a powerful hegemon, but reluctant to interfere in matters of Russian national security.
But this time the matter is very different. The United States pushed Ukraine to provoke Russia, despite knowing that its ability to protect Ukraine is very limited for multiple reasons. First, Ukraine does little to benefit US interests. And secondly, the United States cannot deter Russia in its sphere of influence. Third, the long and costly wars of the twenty-first century in Afghanistan and Iraq have drained popular support for US-led military interventions abroad. More importantly, NATO forces and the European Union will not play an important role other than imposing sanctions and travel bans, as the European market is highly dependent on Russian natural gas. Add to all of the above internal American problems such as inflation, the immigrant crisis, and rising nationalism.
For all these reasons, politicians from both the Republican and Democratic parties leveled sharp criticism that amounted to mocking Biden’s contradictory actions that undermine the hegemony of the United States in the international arena. For example, JD Vance, a candidate for the US Senate, said in a statement on Twitter, “the foreign policy establishment that led Ukraine directly into the slaughterhouse deserves nothing but scorn.”
Also, in another statement, Kevin McCarthy and GOP leaders said: “Sadly, President Biden consistently chose appeasement and his tough talk on Russia was never followed by strong action. Republican Senator Lindsay Graham, speaking about Biden, also said in the same vein” You said a couple of years ago that Putin did not want you to win because you’re the only person that could go toe-to-toe with him. Well right now, Mr. President, you’re playing footsie with Putin. He’s walking all over you.”
All those involved in political action in the United States know very well that the threat to engage in war with great powers such as Russia will cost a heavy price that the United States cannot afford now despite its undeniable strength. Accordingly, after years of deep political divisions over foreign policy and the role of the United States in the world, no one in power has suggested the option of war. Instead, Putin’s military operation in Ukraine revealed a rare point of consensus between Democrats and Republicans as everyone criticized the Biden administration’s escalation of events, rejecting the idea that the United States would go to war to stop him. Some want tougher sanctions and say they should have been imposed before the invasion as a deterrent, others question why the US should be involved at all, and everyone agrees it’s Biden’s fault.
This apparent decline of US hegemony has profound repercussions as it urges many other great powers to move forward. Today, questions abound about how China will deal with Taiwan, Japan, etc., and issues related to its regional interests. Although the United States may still possess the hegemonic power, it no longer can unilaterally deter or enforce the actions of other great powers. Russia’s involvement in the Syrian civil war, the Iranian nuclear program, and aggression in the Arctic all clearly show that the Russians no longer believe that the United States is fully capable of containing or deterring their actions. Recent years have shown that other major powers are testing how far the United States will go to maintain its position in the system, and if the United States is perceived to be weak or unwilling, the great powers will assert their presence. Certainly, Ukraine is the latest example of Russia’s ability to limit American hegemony.
Marwa El-Shinawy: Assistant Prof. at International American University for Specialized Studies (IAUS)
