EU and US need each other as equal partners

Europe and the US must seek to build a new strategic relationship, writes Brian Cowen in an article based on his contribution…

Europe and the US must seek to build a new strategic relationship, writes Brian Cowen in an article based on his contribution to the recent EU Foreign Ministers' debate in Rhodes

The relationship between Europe and the United States is a complicated one. We are close friends, joined by our history, by our peoples, by our culture, by our values. Yet there are tensions and rivalries, even if these are often exaggerated.

On the economic front, we frequently see ourselves as competitors or find ourselves parties to a trade dispute. However, the economic interdependence and investment flows between Europe and the United States are of vital importance to jobs and economic growth on both sides of the Atlantic and in the wider global economy.

On the political front, we sometimes differ in our world view and in our approach to regional issues, notwithstanding that we agree far more often than we disagree.

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The disastrous wars of the 20th century led to Europe's eclipse by the United States as the world's dominant political and military force. However, as Europe recovers its geographic integrity and seeks to build a new political entity, the question arises as to the nature of its future relationship with the United States.

Will the EU pose a threat to America's global interests, or should it become a more equal partner in a reinvigorated partnership? I believe the latter is the more likely.

The reality is that every country in Europe has its own "special relationship" with the United States which impacts to a greater or lesser extent on its policy decisions.

The transatlantic relationship is a core factor which must be accommodated in the development of the European Union.

Consider, for instance, the so-called transatlantic differences in relation to Iraq. Certainly, public opinion in Europe was not generally in sympathy with the US approach, even if there was widespread welcome for the end of a cruel dictatorship. Nevertheless, the political fault lines which appeared did not run neatly down the middle of the Atlantic, they criss-crossed the continent of Europe.

Indeed, tensions between European governments were as much about attitudes to the transatlantic relationship as they were about how best to disarm Iraq.

To understand the dynamic of the transatlantic relationship, we must acknowledge that Europe and America are themselves undergoing a process of change.

The European Union is widening and deepening. The arrival of the new members of the Union will reinforce the transatlantic relationship. Like us in Ireland, they have their own emigrant communities in North America. Those countries which escaped from Soviet domination understandably appreciate the role played by the United States in bringing about the conditions whereby they could regain full freedom.

Yet, while most Europeans still feel close to America, there are signs that America no longer looks automatically to Europe as its partner of choice.

Like Europe, the United States is becoming an increasingly multicultural society. Immigration from Latin America, Asia and Africa and the passing of the generations, mean that a diminishing proportion of Americans feel personal ties to Europe.

The generation of Americans which experienced the second World War and worked with Europeans to create the multilateral framework - the UN, the Bretton Woods institutions and, for those involved, NATO - has been replaced by a generation that feels no automatic loyalty to this common legacy.

Also, today's Americans feel threatened in a way they had never foreseen. The events of September 11th, 2001, have had a deeply traumatising and transformative impact on the US's view of the world and of itself.

Even before then, there were philosophical and political differences between many in Europe and the present US administration. Policy choices have been very different on a range of issues. These are facts which can only be overcome by a continuing and mutually respectful dialogue.

The citizens of Europe want a European Union that can stand in more equal partnership with the US and exercise greater influence on the world stage. The US will remain the world's foremost military superpower. The EU does not see itself competing with the US in that sense.

But rightly, the Union must develop its capacity to make an effective contribution to international peace and security.

Europe can also become a more viable partner of the United States by playing to its own strengths; by sharing the lessons of the failures and successes of its own historical experience; by using its political and economic influence to ensure that threats to international peace and security are addressed by peaceful persuasion, where possible.

Differences with the US over multilateralism and the role of the UN are deeply problematic for most of us. Multilateralism is a tenet of faith for us in Europe; for the US it can, at times, appear to be an optional extra. The Union must work to reinforce the standing of the United Nations so that it becomes an organisation that is willing and able to secure respect for its own resolutions. Those around the world who complain about US unilateralism need to demonstrate that the multilateral system offers a more effective means of ensuring global security.

Europe and the United States must seek to build a strategic relationship, able to withstand good times and bad. We must do so on the basis of a strengthened EU common foreign and security policy which will allow Europe to speak with greater authority and credibility.

We need to learn the lessons of the past weeks and re-establish mutual esteem within the Union. This means consulting with each other in good time, and before we take major foreign policy positions. We need to avoid the situation or temptation of one partner, or pairings or groups of partners seeing themselves as speaking for the EU as a whole.

Where possible, we must speak with one voice and act in a common purpose. That is why in the Convention on the Future of Europe we are supporting the proposal for an "EU Minister for Foreign Affairs", who would promote the Union's interests under the authority and direction of the Council, which itself is made up of Foreign Ministers of the member-states.

The Union needs to broaden its political involvement on the world stage. As of now, we are a partner with the US on regional issues - primarily the Balkans and the Middle East.

We need a higher profile in other regions, for example, Asia, Africa, the Caucuses and Central Asia, and Latin America - where Europe also has interests. That is why Ireland has put forward at the convention the idea of deputy foreign ministers with regional responsibilities, working under the direction of the Union Foreign Minister.

But we need to go even further. The EU needs a face and voice in Washington to engage day in day out with the US administration, on Capitol Hill, in the media and with the think-tanks and opinion formers. I would like to see a deputy EU foreign minister given specific responsibility for the US and tasked with this job.

We need now to identify those issues which best lend themselves to rebuilding trust and strength in the relationship. The Middle East peace process remains at the top of this list. Countering terrorism and preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction are other important issues high on the agenda on both sides of the Atlantic.

For me, the indications for the European Union are clear. The Union must adhere to the basic policy triangle of a strengthened common foreign and security policy, a firm attachment to multilateral institutions and a strong transatlantic relationship.

I believe that these three elements of our external relationship are essential and mutually reinforcing. They will be at the core of Ireland's approach when we assume the EU presidency at the beginning of next year.

Brian Cowen is Minister for Foreign Affairs