
Image credit: Tobias Kleinshmidt / CC BY SA 3.0/https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/de/deed.en
May 31, 2019
From 'mein Mädchen' to 'leader of the free world,' Angela Merkel is winding down her political career
President Donald Trump was the 2019 commencement speaker at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Thursday.
“In all things and ways, we are putting America first, and it’s about time,” Trump told the graduating class of just under1,000 cadets. “And we are restoring the fundamental principle that our first obligation and highest loyalty is to the American citizen. No longer will we sacrifice America’s interests to any foreign power. We don’t do that anymore.”
Across the country at Harvard University, new graduates heard a very different message on commencement day.
“Changes for the better are possible if we tackle them together,” Germany's Angela Merkel told the graduating seniors in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “If we want to go it alone, we could not achieve much. More than ever, our way of thinking and our actions have to be multilateral rather than unilateral.”
Listen to Julianne Smith's full conversation on PRI's The World.
More from CNAS
-
Did German Pilots Just Pass NATO’s Tactics to China?
Europe should bury its naivete regarding Chinese military power, even if no Chinese missiles will likely rain down on Paris, London, or Berlin....
By Franz-Stefan Gady
-
Moldova Needs More From Europe Than a Symbolic Summit
The EU must match Russia’s long-term commitment to subverting Moldova’s politics with its own long-term strategy for supporting the country’s path toward full membership in th...
By Nicholas Lokker & Jason C. Moyer
-
Ukraine's Offensive and its Meaning for the War
Following Russia’s failed winter offensive, Ukraine appears to be preparing for its planned counter-offensive. Ryan sat down with Mike Kofman to discuss the state of Russia’s ...
By Michael Kofman & Ryan Evans
-
The Trajectory of the War in Ukraine
The trajectory of the war in Ukraine hinges on the outcome of the widely anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive. Recent events spell trouble for Russia as Pro-Ukrainian Russia...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Jim Townsend & Gustav Gressel