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There is a growing danger that the two most important global "ships," the United States and the European Union, might pass each other in the night. As evidenced by President George W. Bush's two summer tours of Europe, and the media frenzies that preceded them, the sources of contention between the two world powers are numerous, and seemingly growing.
At the heart of many of these disputes is the failure or unwillingness of one side to fully understand where the other side is coming from. If there is a positive result emanating from the tragic events of September 11, it may be that it presents a golden opportunity for the United States and the EU to work together on an issue of mutual concern: global terrorism.
That will involve a significant new effort. Pre-September 11, the United States and the EU had been adopting an increasingly competitive mindset, often acting without consulting the other, or considering how the other will be affected by its actions. The unilateral actions of one side beget hard feelings and unilateral actions by the other.
Simply put, this cannot continue - not if the promise, espoused by both entities, of a world marked by sustained peace and prosperity is to be realized. I remain an optimist about our relationship with the EU but we must recognize the challenges we face.
The European Union's bones of contention with the United States are varied, ranging from foreign policy issues to food safety. In foreign policy, the EU has been disheartened by what it saw pre-September 11, as the current Administration's increasingly unilateralist outlook.
The EU was already deeply concerned during the Clinton Administration about what it considered unilateral, extraterritorial sanctions legislation, reßected in the Helms-Burton Act, intended to discourage foreign business dealings with Cuba, and the Iran Libya Sanctions Act.
More recently, the Europeans cite the Bush Administration's disavowal of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and its position that the 1972 ABM Treaty should be abrogated in order to allow for a missile defense shield. What is more, many Europeans argue that Washington has rejected, or has proposed to reject these pacts, without offering credible alternatives.
On climate control, the United States has found itself on the outside looking in, after 178 countries approved a resolution in Bonn this July that kept the Kyoto Protocol alive, albeit modified from its more stringent 1997 version. The administration's unabashed contention that the United States should reject the climate pact - termed "fatally ßawed" by President Bush - because it would be bad for American business, has reinforced the views of many Europeans that the U.S. outlook is too narrow.
This "America First" attitude is seen as unjustly putting the needs of Americans - whether real or perceived - above those of the global citizenry. In a recent study conducted, in part, by the Pew Research Center, 73 percent of citizens polled in Britain, France, Germany and Italy said that President Bush bases his decisions "entirely on U.S. interests."
On missile defense, and its sibling issue, the abrogation of the ABM Treaty, we have seen the EU speak with a slightly less unanimous voice. In contrast to those who say that the U.S. position should not be quickly dismissed, or that the possible abrogation of the Treaty is solely a concern of the United States and Russia, many European officials regard the administration's position as indicative of a fortress mentality.
On the whole, the EU sees Washington's handling of Kyoto and missile defense, and its similar approach to the International Criminal Court, the germ warfare protocol and the small-arms control pact, together with Mr. Bush's recent suggestion that half of the World Bank's loans to certain poor countries be converted into grants, as confirmation that the United States does not look on the EU as a significant foreign
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