Munich Security Conference Ends with No Solutions to World Chaos

By Pastor Hal Mayer on Feb 23, 2018 12:30 am

 

World leaders and leading experts in international relations left Munich’s 2018 Security Conference uncertain about how to avoid an international catastrophe. And these were experts, mind you. 

There are enough crises going on right now for three Munich Security Conferences. The world is in need of leadership on the global stage – but in Munich, no leaders were in sight, neither from Germany or the United States.

Conference chairman Ischinger said at the close of the conference, “I have not been fully reassured by the discussions over the last two and a half days.” He added that we need to get away from the brink of catastrophe, but that we haven’t heard enough “concrete steps” in order to achieve that. 

The conference produced far more questions than answers, and, as it went on, more and more accusations. Israel blamed Iran, Iran blamed Israel, the US blamed Russia, and Turkey blamed the Kurds. All the while nuclear arsenals are being modernized, new weapons are being developed, and angry tweets are being sent.

Many statesmen brought props to make their point, with Benjamin Netanyahu waving a piece of an Iranian drone, Petro Poroshenko bringing an EU flag, and Japanese Foreign Minister Tarō Kōno showing photographs of North Korean tankers. These provided the attending journalists with good pictures but did little to further dialogue.

At the beginning of the conference, it seemed that Europe might provide the missing leadership. But it quickly became clear that the Europeans are not ready to fill the void that the US’s turn away from the international system is creating. Both the German and the French Ministers of Defense underlined the importance of Europe – “We want to remain transatlantic, but we also want to become more European” (von der Leyen – German); “Europe is not a nice to have, it is a must” (Florence Parly – French) – but these were statements of intent more than fact.

So far, the world has not been informed of any new deals emerging from these discussions, but it is possible that new policies or arrangements have been set in motion this weekend in Munich.

World stability in the last days is not something predicted by the Bible. In fact the opposite is true. The world will become less stable and less secure. And the absence of leadership is a feature that can be expected. 

“And there shall be… upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring.” Luke 21:25.