On Syria, former US Secretary of State John Kerry was asked about the absence of American political engagement. This is a staggering gap between the UN chief and one of permanent five members of the UN Security Council. Mattis stressed during a bilateral meeting with his French counterpart that EU defense initiatives should not compete with NATO. The weekend took on the role of a mirror, showing the international security community exactly how serious things have got in the last year. Significantly, Germany's defense minister criticized Trump from the podium for dialing back American diplomacy with budget and staff cuts at the State Department.

Source: CNN February 19, 2018 16:52 UTC