We Ignore the ‘Lippmann Gap’ at Our Peril
By Francis P. Sempa
April 04, 2023
To the people of America, this engraving of "First in peace," from the original painting, is respectfully dedicated, representing the arrival of General George Washington at the Battery, New York, April 23rd, 1789.
“Foreign policy consists in bringing into balance, with a comfortable surplus of power in reserve, the nation’s commitments and the nation’s power. The constant preoccupation of the true statesman is to achieve and maintain this balance. . . [H]e must . . . bring his ends and means into balance. If he does not, he will follow a course that leads to disaster.” So wrote Walter Lippman during the Second World War in U.S. Foreign Policy: Shield of the Republic. Apparently Georgetown professor Lise Morje Howard and Brookings Institution Scholar Michael O’Hanlon think that the United States can ignore the Lippmann Gap.
Howard and O’Hanlon advocate on the Foreign Affairs website extending America’s security umbrella to postwar Ukraine in the form of something they call the “Atlantic-Asian Security Community” (AASC) which will be composed of “many NATO members,” Ukraine, and neutral states that wish to join. Their proposed security arrangement would include “the indefinite presence of Western military troops on Ukrainian soil,” and “must include U.S. troops” because, they write, “nothing short of American boots on the ground can ensure Ukraine’s democratic future.” “Troops from the United States and other NATO countries,” they write, “should deploy as part of the international force, and the United States should be prepared to come to . . . Ukraine’s defense in the event of an attack.” American and other NATO troops would serve as a “credible tripwire,” and thereby deter future Russian aggression.
https://www.realcleardefense.com/articles/2023/04/04/we_ignore_the_lippmann_gap_at_our_peril_891664.html
