When no one relies upon us any more, what makes our dollars and debts so special? What’s to stop everyone from taking their ball and going to play somewhere else? From calling in debts, from reneging on debts to us, from accepting our dollars, from providing land for military bases, from honoring our passports… because that is what happens to nearly every other country not at the Top.
The global order currently only works in our favor because we’re on top. We are the ones who lose the most when other countries don’t need us, not the other way around.
There have been many stories of EU countries choosing the American alternative, even if it was more expensive. In return, they expected some goodwill from US.
So when you read stories about EU countries not spending enough, consider that a large part of what they do spend goes to the US to appease them.
Now, US is changing the expectations