On March 15, the German Marshall Fund (GMF) Brussels office launched the first edition of the Transatlantic Trends: Leaders survey, which was conducted in cooperation with the Compagnia di San Paolo. Brussels office Deputy Director Corinna Hörst moderated the event, while Prof. Pierangelo Isernia of the University of Siena and a member of the Transatlantic Trends advisory board presented the findings. Panelists Dr. Christian Leffler of the European External Action Service, and Member of the European Parliament Ana Gomes from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats shared their own thoughts on the findings to a full house.

Transatlantic Trends: Leaders is a companion to the Transatlantic Trends survey of public opinion in Europe and the United States. Asking the same questions of European and American leaders, the study not only compares perceptions of transatlantic relations between Europe and the United States, but also between the leaders and their publics.  

The first impression that participants drew from the study was that in general, the transatlantic relationship is alive and well. Leffler stated that the study shows how much the transatlantic relationship rests on a “common ground and appreciation,” while Gomes said that the “Obama Factor” has led to a spirit of strong cooperation between EU and U.S. leaders.

After these harmonious first words, key findings on the divide between Europeans and Americans stirred a lively discussion. While Leffler showed no surprise that Europeans favor non-military action since “nobody in Europe wins elections by raising the military budget,” Gomes pointed out that European public opinion on the use of force can change quickly when issues such as human rights are at stake. European leaders might lose their credibility in the eyes of the voters as they hesitate to use military intervention to prevent human rights violations such as those in Libya. Both Gomes and Leffler agreed that European pacifism might also be a result of Afghanistan, where leaders failed to sell the “right narrative” to their electorates.

Another finding that strongly resonated with the participants was the divided perception of Turkey. European public opinion is very critical of Turkey becoming a member of the EU, whereas European leaders and the U.S. public and leaders take a more favorable view. Gomes attributed this European public mistrust to a sense of Christian heritage that was enforced by conservative European governments, while Leffler argued that the geographical distance allows Americans to be more optimistic, as any negative consequences would not affect them to the same extent. 

More details of the survey can be found atwww.transatlantictrends.org.