Europe’s Vault Amid America's Strategic Retrenchment

BusinessAerospace & DefenseEurope’s Vault Amid America's Strategic RetrenchmentByKamran Bokhari,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Kamran Bokhari is a geopolitical analyst and strategic forecaster.Follow AuthorMay 11, 2026, 09:56am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.A photo taken on January 22, 2018 shows the UBS logo in Zurich. - Swiss banking giant UBS reported on January 22, 2018 that its profits plummeted 63 percent last year due to US tax reforms that hit fourth-quarter earnings. It said annual net profit dropped to 1.16 billion Swiss francs (900 million euros, $1.01 billion) for the year. (Photo by MICHELE LIMINA/AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty ImagesThe future of European security has become one of the central geopolitical questions arising from Washington’s strategic retrenchment. America’s emerging burden-sharing and burden-shifting policy will compel European powers to construct a new continental security architecture – a formidable undertaking given Europe’s fractured strategic history and uneven military capabilities. Within this evolving landscape, Switzerland’s longstanding posture of neutrality and its position as Europe’s vault could become increasingly problematic as the post-World War II order erodes faster than a replacement system can emerge. This may create strategic space for Russia to expand its economic and political penetration into Europe’s financial core.Sergio Ermotti, CEO of UBS Group AG, said on May 6 that Switzerland’s largest bank needs to expand its business in the United States. Recently, the Swiss legislature decided to review alternative options to the new capital rules proposed by the Swiss Federal Council for UBS, one of the world’s most influential institutions in wealth management, investment banking, and private banking. At issue is whether the government will insist that UBS fully...