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The Americas

The transatlantic relationship has been the cornerstone of the EU’s foreign and security policy. However, in a context where some in the US are looking inwards and questioning the values and institutions their country has built internationally, expectations on Europe have increased. The rise of new global power centres has added a new dimension to transatlantic debates, and both sides of the Atlantic must redefine the relationship to preserve security and prosperity, as well as maintain influence in an emerging international system where the 'West’– may no longer be dominant.

The EU has also cultivated and institutionalised relations with Canada and many countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Recent changes in the international context have made the EU a more attractive partner to LAC countries, which are facing economic slowdowns, rising criminality and problems related to the rule of law. However, the increasing contestation of democratic values (which used to bind LAC countries together) has put regional institutions under pressure and strained relations with the EU.

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    22April 2013
    The American sequester - and us
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    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.

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    26March 2013
    The European 'pivot'
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    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?

  • 13March 2013
    EU Washington Forum 2013

    Taking place in Washington, D.C on the 13-14 March, the 2013 EUWF served as a reminder that diplomacy, development and defence are all important elements in attempts to maintain stability and generate growth, even in times of budgetary constraints.

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    18February 2013
    The shale gas ‘revolution’: challenges and implications for the EU
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    The recent boom in ‘unconventional’ oil and gas in the United States has raised many questions regarding the impact it will have on global energy markets, the security of energy supplies, the fight against climate change and even the global balance of power. Is it now time for Europe to develop its own resources?

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    18December 2012
    Look East, Act East: transatlantic agendas in the Asia Pacific
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    With contributions from

    The transatlantic partners share similar objectives with regard to the Asia Pacific. Nevertheless, history, geography as well as differences in perceptions contribute to forging two distinct stances vis-à-vis the region. This report identifies areas where those two positions intersect.

  • 16November 2012
    Obama reloaded
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    With the US presidential election now over, bipartisan cooperation will be required to solve the country's domestic challenges. Yet how will the president tackle both existing and emerging foreign and security policy priorities? And what does an Obama 2.0 mean for the EU?

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    24October 2012
    The most important foreign policy challenges for the next president
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    The most important foreign policy challenges facing a new US administration are twofold and interconnected: a shift in the global balance of traditional power that will obstruct the ability of the US to assert international influence and, the changing nature of threat and risk that expose the increasing limitations of traditional power altogether.

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    24October 2012
    At stake in November: a certain kind of leadership in the transatlantic relationship
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    Two important and relatively novel features of American international leadership, both of which are intimately connected with the Obama administration, are at stake in the November presidential election in the United States. One relates to the general kind of leadership that the world, and specifically Europe, has come to expect from Washington on matters of international importance. The other has to do with the specific contributions of the current US administration to the debate on the most effective way to address the current international economic crisis.

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    24October 2012
    US actions on climate change in the next administration
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    For over two decades the EU has established a track record in global leadership on climate change. While producing mixed results, the EU remains committed to regional and global policies and actions advancing energy sustainability. Although sovereign debt, financial and other economic distresses have rocked the EU since 2008, these difficulties have not lessened the prominence of climate change on the EU’s political agenda.

  • 23July 2012
    America and Europe’s Pacific Partnership
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    The long-anticipated statement that American and European officials have been talking about for months has finally emerged. Announced on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) on July 12, 2012, the statement puts an end to the political toing and froing that both sides of the Atlantic have been engaged in for the past several months. What should come next are concrete actions. 

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    13October 2011
    The Agenda for the EU-US strategic partnership
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    This volume brings together contributions based on reports originally presented at the 2010 EU Washington Forum and is divided into four main chapters which focus specifically on Europe’s ‘unfinished business’ in the Western Balkans and the eastern neighbourhood, the Middle East, transatlantic cooperation on the economy and nuclear non-proliferation.

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    20September 2011
    Q: The Arab democratic wave and the Middle East: a window of opportunity?
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    A: Not for Israel

    After losing Turkey and Egypt, evacuating its embassy in Jordan and awaiting further conflict on the eve of a looming Palestinian statehood, Israel’s foreign policy is in ruins.

     

    The deterioration of the Turkish-Israeli relationship is often linked to Turkey’s democratisation. Will a post-revolutionary and potentially democratic Egypt follow a similar path? And what are the consequences of this for Israel?

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    10September 2011
    Fears trump freedoms
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    The commemoration of 10 years since the attacks of 9/11 is an opportunity to both remember the victims and their families and to reflect on the evolution of our society since those tragic events.

    We can all recall the day the towers of the World Trade Center were attacked, but the memories of life before that day seem to be fading away. This is perhaps the reason why news of Osama bin Laden's death was for some a reason for celebration. Repeated triumphalist shouts in front of the White House felt improper.

    Defending our way of life

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    09September 2011
    Ten years after: the War on Terror was not inevitable
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    Ten years after the barbarian attacks against the Americans, have we even understood its long-term impact? Was the Bush administration right in thinking that 9/11 changed the world?

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    08November 2010
    The US midterm elections: implications for the transatlantic agenda
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    The nostalgia for President Obama’s message of hope, change and post-partisanship articulated during the 2008 presidential elections was not enough to win over the majority of Americans preoccupied with high unemployment rates, slow economic growth and the country’s huge deficit.

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    09April 2010
    A Good START
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    The New START, a bilateral nuclear arms reduction treaty, aims to significantly reduce the weapons stockpiles of both the US and Russia. While it may be seen as a positive step towards disarmament and for US-Russia relations, getting it past the US Senate is Obama’s next big challenge, writes Jean Pascal Zanders.

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    07April 2010
    The Institute's quarterly newsletter No. 31
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    Articles in this current issue: "After Lisbon: the States of the Union", "The EU and natural gas: the new security agenda", and "Obama's first year: a transformational presidency?"

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    22January 2010
    The future of Haiti: not simply a matter of money
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    The devastating earthquake in Haiti tore apart the already impoverished nation, setting back recent development efforts by several years. But simply pouring money and personnel into the country will not secure its future. What Haiti desperately needs is its diaspora and a legitimate local leadership, writes Damien Helly.

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    04November 2009
    The Obama Moment
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    'The Obama Moment' provides an authoritative analysis of the most topical global questions of our time: multilateralism, the economy, disarmament and climate change. Will the election of Obama facilitate enhanced transatlantic co-operation in dealing with these and other challenges?

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    08October 2009
    The Institute's quarterly newsletter No.30
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    Articels in this ISSue: Álvaro de Vasconcelos looks back to 1989 and draws conclusions for Europe today, Ahmet Davutoglu outlines his vision of future EU - NATO cooperation and the role of non-EU allies in contributing to the European Security and Defence Policy and Jean Pascal Zanders looks at Obama and the the first steps toward disarmament.

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