America First foreign policy ‘profoundly dangerous,' invites multi-front war, eminent historian warns

FIRST ON FOX – The United States needs to support its world attraction and efforts to stymie nan increasing practice and ambition of "axis of evil states," according to historiographer and journalist Andrew Roberts, Baron Roberts of Belgravia. Roberts sits successful nan British House of Lords.

"When it comes to nan axis of evil states, frankly, it’s not nan worst point successful nan world to person a everlastingly war, particularly if you will not really fight," Roberts, a biographer of respective British leaders, including Winston Churchill, told Fox News Digital. "It tin beryllium done for an magnitude which is simply a really very awesome return connected investment." 

Roberts, on pinch retired Gen. David Petraeus, wrote "Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine," an appraisal of U.S. overseas conflict engagement examined done nan lens of successful strategical leadership. Roberts is presently moving connected caller chapters for nan paperback release, which will attraction connected nan warfare successful Gaza and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ambitions for Taiwan. 

He based on that nan United States, arsenic a world superpower, tin and should "walk and chew gum" – truthful to speak – and that American isolationism would beryllium "a profoundly vulnerable force… not conscionable for nan remainder of nan world but for America arsenic well, ultimately." 

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China's Xi Jinping, Russia's Vladimir Putin and Iran's Ali Khamenei (Getty Images)

"If nan United States decides to fundamentally motion disconnected nan work of a awesome world superpower that you’ve been really since nan Great White Fleet circumnavigated nan world successful 1909, a agelong clip agone now… 1 tin understand that immoderate titan gets weary," Roberts said. "However, if you were to clasp isolationism, nan eventual consequence would beryllium from nan confederation of anti-democratic nations that we are seeing is moving person and closer… yet it will rebound terribly connected you."

The desire for an "America First" argumentation has grown stronger arsenic nan U.S. faces down 2 important conflicts – first from Russia, now successful its third twelvemonth of invading Ukraine, and from nan bubbling hostility betwixt Iran and Israel.

Some Republicans peculiarly person opposed nan continued backing of Ukraine without a clear scheme arsenic to really nan conflict could end, raising fears of different "forever war" for illustration those nan U.S. maintained successful nan Middle East complete nan past 2 decades. 

Andrew Roberts, nan renowned historiographer and writer, successful Windsor, England, Oct. 23. (David Levenson/Getty Images)

House Republicans person worked to information assistance for Ukraine, which has surpassed $113 cardinal arsenic of March 2024. Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good, R-Va., called for immoderate backing to Ukraine to beryllium balanced retired by spending cuts elsewhere and for it to beryllium paired pinch U.S. separator argumentation changes. The House yet passed nan $60 cardinal backing measure for Ukraine connected Saturday.

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"We cannot proceed to get and walk money we don’t person for wars overseas while failing to protect Americans from nan Biden separator penetration present astatine home," Good told Fox News Digital earlier this month. "At a bare minimum, immoderate package for subject assistance to Ukraine should beryllium afloat offset and must see H.R. 2 pinch capacity metrics to unafraid our ain border."

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy meets pinch House Speaker Mike Johnson to talk further assistance from Congress. (Courtesy Speaker Mike Johnson's office)

Roberts based on that nan U.S., arsenic a "great superpower… immoderate mightiness reason nan only superpower" tin protect some itself and support friends successful a conflict that has proven an "extremely impressive" return connected investment. 

"The Ukrainians person taken retired good complete half of nan Russian vessel fleet," Roberts noted. "Now, astatine immoderate shape successful American post-war history, if you connection nan president that deal, he'd person snapped it up."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses a associated gathering of Congress connected Capitol Hill connected Dec. 21, 2022. (AP/Carolyn Kaster)

"You've sewage a $825 cardinal per annum defense fund to spend, [and] little than a 10th of that, return retired your opponent's vessel fleet, fundamentally – astatine least, complete half of it – is an astonishing return connected investment," he added. 

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"After 20 years of nan everlastingly warfare successful Afghanistan earlier Biden's, successful my view, outrageous scuttle from that country, you'd sewage it down to nan business wherever nary Americans had died for 18 months, and nan full American costs of this conflict was down to astir 20 to $25 cardinal a year," he said. "That's an astonishing thing, to beryllium capable to support nan Taliban retired of power."

Ukrainian servicemen occurrence pinch a D-30 howitzer astatine Russian positions adjacent Bakhmut, eastbound Ukraine, connected March 21, 2023. (Sergey Shestak/AFP via Getty Images)

However, Roberts stressed that location should stay limits to nan U.S. ambitions overseas, dismissing nan thought that Washington should activity Russian authorities alteration arsenic "not our duty, not our job, not our responsibility, and surely not a very sensible thing." 

"The evident logic is that it would conscionable stoke anti-Western nationalism successful Russia," he explained. "No, they tin do those things themselves, and I deliberation nan constituent astatine which they mightiness do that is, arsenic has happened truthful often successful history, erstwhile Russian aggression has been shown not to succeed."

Firefighters conflict a blaze aft a Russian onslaught connected flat buildings successful Uman, southbound of Kiev, Ukraine, April 28, 2023. (National Police of Ukraine via AP)

Roberts lamented, though, that Russia has made strides successful Ukraine’s easternmost territories, pinch a breakthrough connected nan front and perchance bigger gains to travel "if nan West doesn’t thief Ukraine more."

Indeed, much and much analysts and commentators person grown progressively dismal astir Ukraine’s imaginable successes: The BBC, Politico EU and different outlets successful nan past week person tally articles discussing why and really Ukraine could look conclusion this year. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says immoderate triumph hinges connected continued backing from friends to support gait pinch Russia.

Roberts suggested that specified last day prophecies whitethorn beryllium premature, stressing that "there’s nary specified point arsenic inevitability successful history."

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"So galore times successful history, you've seen 1 point astir to hap and past nan other happens," Roberts mused. "These breakthroughs nan Russians are having successful definite theaters… not awesome ones truthful far, but they are fighting pinch a ammunition advantage, and that's because nan United States and Europe are not providing nan shells."

"It's surely not inevitable that either nan Ukrainians triumph aliases suffer that warfare unless, of course, we stopped providing them pinch nan wherewithal to proceed to fight," he warned. "It's them that are putting up successful nan blood, immense amounts of it, but simply because Russia is simply a bigger state does not mean that it's automatically going to win: If that was nan case, you'd person won successful Vietnam."

Fox News Digital's Brooke Singman contributed to this report.