✍️ Prepared by: BETH Media Agency

Introduction

Despite the elegance of modern European discourse and its consistent promotion of coexistence and human rights, a closer look at the continent's history reveals that its defining chapters were written in wars, not in treaties.

Was European diplomacy merely a pause between wars? Are we looking at a continent that loves conquest—yet masters it through a refined language?

This report seeks to move beyond conventional narratives by delving into the European war mindset, deconstructing philosophies, reviewing facts, and exposing the contradiction between what is said and what is done.

Before Diplomacy… Europe: The Birthplace of Wars

Since the Middle Ages, Europe has been a patchwork of kingdoms and principalities competing for dominance. Internal and external warfare were part of the political fabric of the continent, where expansionist power was often more sought after than stability.

From the Roman Empire to Christian empires, followed by the Crusades,
Then came waves of nationalist wars, and eventually, the World Wars—natural extensions of Europe’s historic expansionist drive.

War in the European Political Mind

Philosophically, Europe has embraced notions such as “the end justifies the means” and “strike before being struck” to justify invasions and wars.

War became a tool to export ideologies (as with Napoleon), justify racial superiority (as in colonialism), or subjugate peoples under the guise of “civilization.”

Even the concept of a “preemptive war,” later adopted by the American era, has its roots in Europe.

Soft Diplomacy… or Strategic Prelude to War?

European treaties often served to postpone or consolidate wars rather than prevent them.
Truces were used to rearm; alliances were a means to encircle adversaries.

From the Congress of Vienna to the Sykes-Picot Agreement to post-war treaties—all maintained European expansion through polished forms.

Examples of Europe’s Historical Love Affair with War

The Crusades: Not merely religious—political conquests wrapped in faith.

Napoleon Bonaparte: Wielded weapons to spread “French enlightenment.”

European Colonialism: Invaded Africa, Asia, and Latin America under the pretense of “civilizing the savages.”

World Wars I & II: Entirely European in origin—then exported to the globe.

Bosnia, the Balkans, and Ukraine: Recent echoes of a deep-rooted conflict mindset.

Why Isn't Europe Accused of Loving War?

Western media masterfully crafts a polished image of European politics.

European academia frames wars as “lessons in peacebuilding.”

Meanwhile, Arabs are portrayed as impulsive warmongers, and Easterners as inherently aggressive.

Has Europe Changed… or Just Its Tools?

Today’s wars wear a new face:
Sanctions, economic alliances, media pressure.

NATO—is it a peacekeeper or a mechanism for Western leverage?

Eastern expansion in Europe now happens through legal frameworks, yet often driven by the old spirit of domination.

The Bitter Cure… Can Truth Be Spoken Aloud?

Europe must still confront the fact that its civilization was built on blood and colonies.

Real peace cannot be based on well-crafted narratives but requires a bold historical reckoning.

And respect for others begins with uncovering the self, not airbrushing it.

BETH’s Conclusion

At BETH, we do not seek to provoke the past, but to stir the stagnant—so that it does not repeat itself.

If history is often written by the powerful,
We choose to write it here with the voice of awareness.

Because honest media… reads beneath the skin, not above the table.