Source: The American Conservative
by Ted Galen Carpenter
“Since the end of World War II, the United States has built an ever-expanding global network of military allies. The term ‘ally’ may legitimately apply to Britain, France, Japan, Germany, and a few of Washington’s other security partners, but most of the so-called allies are merely small U.S. security dependents. They constitute potential burdens and dangerous geopolitical snares for the United States while providing few if any strategic benefits. An especially worrisome aspect of these relationships is that such clients spend considerable effort trying to manipulate, even pervert, U.S. policy to support their parochial objectives. That dynamic creates the danger of small clients gaining undue influence over Washington’s behavior. A security client tail thus may succeed in wagging the U.S. dog.” (03/29/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/client-tails-wag-the-u-s-dog/