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Anchor Elaine Reyes speaks with Andrew Small, Transatlantic Fellow of the Asia Program for the German Marshall Fund, about Beijing's potential role in brokering peace between Israel and Palestine
U.S. Needs Alliance With Europe
June 18, 2008 / Jack Martin
The Wichita Eagle
As President Bush made his farewell tour of Europe, one could almost be forgiven for thinking the continent had become an afterthought for the United States.
Yet such a view would ignore the fact that a strong trans-Atlantic alliance is needed now more than ever, as America shares many more values, challenges and goals with the democracies of Europe than with any other nations.
This was evident during a recent seminar organized by the German Marshall Fund of the United States and the German Ministry of Defense. As a Manfred Woerner Seminar Fellow, I had the opportunity to join with more than two dozen American and German professionals in discussions with key German, NATO and European Union foreign policy and security leaders.
The United States, Germany and the other European democracies all share common values, and many of our people share common ancestries. We all desire secure yet open societies where people have a voice in their government and are free to pursue happy, productive lives. This much is clear.
What was also made clear during the seminar was that while our shared values and history point to a desire for greater trans-Atlantic cooperation, the similarity of the challenges we face demand it. The democracies of the West cannot hope to be successful without working together.
For example, both the United States and Europe both must shift away from fossil fuels for environmental reasons and because of the security problems that come from our reliance on oil and gas.
In the fight against terrorist extremists, Europe has been hit more recently, and is closer to the breeding grounds for terrorists, than the United States. That's why both the United States and its NATO allies, such as Germany, have troops fighting to stabilize Afghanistan, and why such an effort must be enhanced.
And on Iran, while the United States is justifiably concerned about the potential for Iran to develop nuclear weapons, Europe is again closer to the action and would be within the range of Iranian missiles much earlier than the United States. Here again, a united front is needed.
On issue after issue, Americans and Europeans share common cause. Just as we did when we came together to face down the Soviet threat, we must join together again to meet these new challenges. Each side can benefit from the specific strengths of the other, and both sides can benefit from a union of our efforts.
This does not mean there will not be times when we disagree on specific policies or goals. But our values are too similar, our histories too intertwined and the challenges we face too great to let the trans-Atlantic alliance fray.
Jack Martin is deputy director of university communications at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. A similar piece can be found in the Kansas City Star.
