Edmundo Albornoz | Communist Party of Ecuador
In the new architecture of global power, imperialism no longer always needs marines. Today, dominance is exercised through trade agreements, digital platforms, energy dependencies, and narrative control mechanisms. In this new scenario, the link between Washington and Brussels is no longer a defensive alliance but has become a deeply asymmetrical hierarchical structure. It is a trap from the other side of the Atlantic, a multifaceted system of subordination, carefully designed to keep Europe within the perimeter of US imperialism’s influence.
NATO, once presented as the military shield of the “free world,” has been turned into a platform for economic extraction. Under pressure from Washington, especially during Trump’s term, Europe must increase its military budget to 5% of GDP, but not to strengthen autonomous defense, but to buy US weapons. This is a modern form of financial tribute: paying to remain in the imperial club.
In the break with Russia, induced by the war in Ukraine, the US destroyed the European energy matrix Nord Stream 2 (in Trump’s words) and did not act as an ally. It exported liquefied natural gas (LNG) at inflated prices, taking advantage of European vulnerability to turn energy into a tool of subordination. What was once energy interdependence is now imposed dependence.
Big US tech companies are not only seeking profits, but political immunity. Every European attempt to regulate platforms, protect data, or control algorithms is met by Washington with economic threats and narrative blackmail. The discourse of freedom of expression is instrumentalized as a Trojan horse to preserve US digital hegemony, a kind of digital colonialism.
Europe has been stripped of real sovereignty, becoming the periphery of the imperial center. Its industrial, energy, and technology policies are subject to intervention. Even the European rearmament plan, valued at €800 billion, must be carried out with US materials, under an explicit veto on any real autonomy. Europe does not decide: it obeys.
In the 21st century, occupation does not need troops. The EU is invaded by ironclad contracts, unequal treaties, and a financial architecture subordinate to the dollar. It is an economic occupation zone, where real power is exercised from across the Atlantic.
European industrial policy is being designed to benefit US companies. The European Chip Act, theoretically created to reduce dependence, has served to subsidize Silicon Valley companies. At the same time, agreements with China have been systematically sabotaged.
In the digital realm, every regulatory attempt, such as the Digital Services Act, provokes direct reactions from Washington, which demands exceptions for its tech giants. Europe controls neither its data, nor its servers, nor its hardware. Everything is privatized and foreign-owned.
Energy policy has also been captured. Through opaque agreements, corporations such as Exxon and Chevron influence the fiscal and energy decisions of European states. The green transition has become a business of the North for the North, financed by Europe.
And the dollar remains the central instrument of discipline. Any initiative to trade in alternative currencies is blocked by threats or sanctions. The European Central Bank acts as a satellite of the Federal Reserve, with no real autonomy. Meanwhile, the financial bubble threatens to accelerate in the City of London.
Finally, domination is also ideological. Euro-Atlantic media, think tanks, and foundations shape a single discourse: aligning with the United States is synonymous with democracy. Any alternative, from multilateralism to neutrality, is dismissed as populism or authoritarianism.
The Atlantic Trap is no accident: it is the central design of the new imperialism. In this context, the anti-imperialist struggle must incorporate Europe not as an ally, but as a field of strategic dispute. France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, driven by economic and hegemonic ambitions and under pressure from transnational corporations, want to prolong the war. Widespread inflation with rising fuel prices is fueling the financial bubble. Chaos looms as Germany’s Volkswagen admits it cannot compete with China in the construction of electric cars and is considering building weapons. France’s Renault promises the same. As long as Brussels chooses to remain subordinate, it will remain part of the problem. Not the solution! Now is the time for the people.