Europe has suffered "the disintegration" of its civilization over the last three decades and has failed to carry its share of the defense burden, former Trump administration Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie said on Newsmax Saturday.
The cultural shifts have tracked with "the abandonment of the European partners of their collective responsibility to defend themselves and help protect the United States and our wider interests," Wilkie, now the co-chair at the America First Policy Institute's Center for American Security, told Newsmax's "Wake Up America Weekend."
"There are large swaths of Britain, France, that have been Islamized," he added. "Free speech is in retreat."
His comments came in response to Secretary of State Marco Rubio's remarks at the Munich Security Conference, where he stressed the importance of unity and said that Washington has no plans to walk away from NATO.
"If at times we disagree, our disagreements come from our profound sense of concern about a Europe with which we are connected, not just economically, not just militarily," Rubio said.
"We are connected spiritually, and we are connected culturally," he added. "We want Europe to be strong. We believe that Europe must survive."
Rubio also pointed to President Donald Trump’s priorities while pressing Europe to spend more on defense and rely less on the United States, even as he said the U.S. prefers to move forward with allies.
Wilkie agreed that the United States "can’t do this alone, particularly with China."
However, the wider geopolitical threat has grown, said Wilkie, particularly with the shrinking of military forces.
He pointed to Canada and Britain to underscore his point, noting that at one point, "Canada had the fourth largest army in NATO."
"Today, the Canadian Army is the size of the Alabama National Guard," Wilkie said. "There are less than 100 pilots in the Canadian Air Force, and 16 of them are dedicated to the demonstration team, the Snowbirds."
And with Britain, "you can fit the entire British Army inside Wembley Stadium in London, and the top tier would be empty,” Wilkie said.
He also slammed Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., for her comments during the conference, after she stumbled while answering questions about China and Taiwan.
"You heard nonsense," he said. "You heard someone who is the epitome of an empty suit."
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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