The role and importance of the United States in international affairs is far from a new subject - it has been the subject of debate for quite some time. A new dimension to the currently ongoing debate though is the decrease in US power (which has remained largely unchallenged since the end of the Cold War). For decades, the prevailing view has been that a very limited number of global issues can be resolved without America. With the financial crisis, questionable foreign policy choices and growing global competition from other international actors, most notably China, does this view still hold? Is US decline inevitable and what does it imply? If decreasing US power is indeed a fact, how will the US manage this new situation and what will be its influence be in the future ? What will become of the United States? Will it remain a leading power, one of many powers or just a regional power?
At the same time, the United States has clear expectations towards its European partners. As President Obama put it recently: "We want strong allies. We are not looking to be patrons of Europe. We are looking to be partners of Europe". He spoke specifically of European defence capabilities, but this attitude can nonetheless be traced in other areas ranging from the war in Afghanistan, the Middle East Peace Process, the fight against terrorism or the economic recovery. So what kind of partner should the European Union aim to be?
Prior to the elections, the EUISS asked experts experts from EU Centers of Excellence in the United States to identify the most important domestic or foreign policy issues that are set to shape transatlantic relations in the coming years.
Budget cuts in the US are causing concerns not only because of their effect on security and defence spending, but also because of the particular way in which much of them are set to be administered. This brief argues that as a result of sequestration, the EU would do well to identify and take seriously its strategic interests and to invest in its own operational capabilities.
The US ‘pivot’ towards Asia has generated debate in Europe about whether the EU should upgrade its presence in the region. Yet, as this alert shows, the EU and its member states already began their own, largely undetected, rebalancing towards Asia roughly a decade ago. Does the EU now have the possibility of becoming – even inadvertently – an Asian (minor) power?
As part of the build up to the 2011 EU-Washington Forum, the EUISS invited a handful of select journalists, think tankers, academics, policy makers and prominent thinkers to take part in a four-part online debate exploring and examining the effects of the Arab Spring on the EU and the US.
With reference to the EU-Washington Forum 2013, the Institute was mentioned in an article titled 'Mars et Vénus, Bagdad et Bamako' written by the Editorial Director of Le Monde, Sylvie Kauffmann.
Le Monde
