Cash test: can Europe support Ukraine alone?

The current geopolitical landscape faces uncertainty as Donald Trump’s transactional approach to foreign policy strains the alliance with Ukraine, leaving European nations to shoulder the financial and logistical burden of the ongoing conflict. While Europe struggles to replicate critical American military capabilities like satellite internet and missile defense, the continent also grapples with rising domestic fiscal pressures. Simultaneously, American scientific research is undergoing a structural shift toward private, non-academic institutions designed to bridge the "valley of death" between basic research and commercial application. This venture-capital-inspired model complements traditional academia but raises questions about the future of public funding. Furthermore, European museums are experiencing a surge in high-value art theft, exposing the vulnerability of historic institutions that struggle to balance public accessibility with the high costs of modern security measures like metal detectors and AI-monitored surveillance.