THE UNITED STATES AND EUROPE IN 2009:
A CONVERSATION WITH CARL BILDT AND ALEXANDR VONDRA
by Chad D'Amore

WASHINGTON, DC: On 19 November, the Brookings Institution hosted a public dialogue on the United States and Europe in 2009. The event, hosted by Daniel Benjamin who directs the Center for U.S. and Europe, featured the Honorable Alexandra Vondra, Deputy Prime Minister of the Czech Republic; the Honorable Carl Bildt, Foreign Minister of Sweden; and Ambassador James F. Dobbins, former US Ambassador to the European Union and former Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs, and currently the Director of RAND's International Security and Defense Policy Center.

Deputy Prime Minister Vondra said that the Czech presidency of the EU will take the 3Es as its main priorities: Economy, Energy, and Europe. He suggested two main strategies: (1)Eastern partnership, and (2) Strong transatlantic relations. He expressed the necessity to re-engage the Russian Federation to avoid the inflation of its volatile relations and avoid jeopardizing the deep economic bond, key trading relations, and the Russian supply of energy. He also stressed that in recent events, the Russian Federation has been in breach of international agreements, and that the EU should not engage the Russian Federation without consulting the United States. He reiterated that any EU engagement with the Russian Federation must be designed by all 27 member states, and take into consideration the vastly different perceptions of the members with regards to the Russian Federation.

Swedish Foreign Minister Bildt discussed the Swedish viewpoint of the upcoming global challenges facing the EU and the US in 2009. He said that Sweden plans to utilize the same template as their Czech predecessors to address several clusters of challenges. One of his most immediate concerns is the resolution of the Treaty of Lisbon, emphasizing its importance to the operation of the EU foreign policy apparatus. As such, engaging Ireland in a dialogue is necessary.

The Treaty of Lisbon (also known as the Reform Treaty) was designed to streamline the workings of the European Union (EU) with amendments to the Treaty on European Union (TEU, Maastricht) and the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC, Rome), the latter being renamed Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the process. It was signed on 13 December 2007 in Lisbon (as Portugal held the EU Council's Presidency at the time), and was planned to have been ratified in all member states by the end of 2008, so it could come into force before the 2009 European elections. Twenty-five (25) of the total 27 member states have completed the ratification. However, the rejection of the Treaty on 12 June 2008 by the Irish electorate means that the treaty cannot currently come into force.

Foreign Minister Bildt also addressed the cluster of challenges surrounding the issue of trade and energy. He warned the considerable dangers involved in protectionism in addition to the global implications of the "war of bailouts." In describing opportunity to progress, he expressed high expectations from the upcoming Doha Round. The Doha Round (known as the Doha Development Round) is the current trade-negotiation round of the World Trade Organization (WTO) which commenced in November 2001. Its objective is to lower trade barriers around the world, which allows countries to increase trade globally. The Doha Round began with a ministerial-level meeting in Doha, Qatar in 2001. Subsequent ministerial meetings took place in Cancún, Mexico (2003), and Hong Kong (2005). Related negotiations took place in Geneva, Switzerland (2004, 2006, 2008); Paris, France (2005); and Potsdam, Germany (2007). The most recent round of negotiations, July 23-29 2008, broke down after failing to reach a compromise on agricultural import rules. Major negotiations will resume in 2009.

On the Middle East peace process, Foreign Minister Bildt expressed his belief that more has been accomplished than commonly perceived, and that all engagements up to this point have added up to enormous possibility of achieving the final objectives of the peace process. On Africa, he expressed his dedication to humanitarian challenges in countries such as Congo, Somalia, Sudan, and Zimbabwe. In dealing with global challenges, he concluded that it requires cooperation between the European Union and the United States, emphasizing that neither country can do it on their own.

Ambassador Dobbins expressed a tremendous sense of hope in the effectiveness of the transatlantic relations as a means of addressing global challenges. He highlighted several strong areas of continuity between the EU and the US such as Russia, NATO, Iraq, and Afghanistan. However, he also mentioned two areas of discontinuity: Finance and the economy. He then spoke on Obama's great credibility, popularity, and potential to influence the world, as made obvious by the European's vicarious engagement in the first "global election."