Stars with Stripes : The Essential Partnership Between the European Union and the United States

For sixty years, the United States has supported European integration on a bipartisan basis—not only because this has served European interests, but because it has promoted American interests as well. As core partners in transatlantic efforts to address regional and global economic, political and security challenges, the US and the EU have collaborated critically over the years to make the world a less turbulent place. That is, until the 2016 election of Donald J. Trump. In this era of Brexit and President Trump's incendiary rhetoric regarding Europe, it has never been more important to understand and defend the EU as a significant and valuable American ally. Written by President Barack Obama's Ambassador to the European Union, Stars with Stripes provides an analytic yet accessible look at how the US and the EU have worked together effectively on numerous core issues such as trade, the digital economy, climate change and more. In blending humor, personal experience, references to popular culture, and incisive analyses of the major issues and players in the diplomatic relationship between the US and the EU, former Ambassador Anthony Luzzatto Gardner tells an illuminating story of this essential partnership, and provides an exclusive insider look at US/EU diplomacy as well as the Brussels political scene. Acknowledgements......Page 6 Praise for Stars with Stripes......Page 11 Contents......Page 15 List of Figures......Page 17 1 Introduction......Page 19 Storm Clouds Over Crimea......Page 20 Storm Clouds Over Data Privacy......Page 22 A Toxic Brew: Economic Fragility, Mass Migration, Brexit, and Terrorism......Page 27 The End of Europe?......Page 30 The Brussels Bubble......Page 34 The Reason for This Book......Page 38 Europe in My Blood......Page 43 The Importance of Transatlantic Values......Page 47 “Going Native”?......Page 50 Crafting a Transatlantic Agenda......Page 54 Supporting the EU in the Obama Administration......Page 57 Observing Some EU Flaws......Page 61 Is the EU Too Diverse?......Page 65 “And Yet It Moves”......Page 69 A Unique Superpower......Page 70 3 Brexit......Page 75 Boris Turns the Tide of the Brexit Referendum......Page 78 Briefing the Secretary......Page 82 Dictatorship and Vassalage......Page 88 Taking Back Control......Page 93 The UK’s Relationship with the EU......Page 96 Cameron’s Opt-Outs......Page 100 President Obama Speaks Out......Page 102 The Impact of Brexit on US–EU Relations......Page 105 A Failure of Leadership......Page 110 From Great Britain to Little England?......Page 113 Part I Economic Ties......Page 120 4 Trade......Page 121 Early Clashes over Dispute Settlement......Page 122 The German Puzzle......Page 124 Hoping to Be Crucified on a Big Cross......Page 128 The Progress Achieved......Page 134 Some Lessons Learned......Page 138 Failures to Communicate......Page 141 Changes Required in the US Approach......Page 148 Changes Required in the EU Approach......Page 153 All Together Now......Page 160 5 Data Privacy......Page 165 The Court’s Flawed Judgment......Page 167 Anger at European Double Standards......Page 175 The Economic Consequences of the Court’s Decision......Page 179 Threats to Other Key Agreements......Page 182 Different Perspectives on Privacy......Page 184 Negotiating the Deal......Page 188 Criticism of the Deal......Page 195 Building on Privacy Shield......Page 200 6 The Digital Economy......Page 206 Concerns About GAFA......Page 208 Taxation of the Digital Economy......Page 212 The EU’s Digital Single Market......Page 218 Benefits from Online Platforms......Page 229 Conflict over Copyright......Page 232 Transatlantic Digital Cooperation......Page 239 Some Digital Challenges We Face......Page 245 Part II Security Ties......Page 254 7 Sanctions......Page 255 A Conversation in the Kremlin......Page 260 What Russia Guessed Right......Page 263 What Russia Guessed Wrong......Page 272 Sanctions on Iran......Page 280 Targeting Iran’s Financial and Energy Sectors......Page 284 8 Energy Security......Page 292 Russia’s Use of Energy as a Weapon......Page 294 The Diverging Prospects of US and European Energy Markets......Page 296 US Support for European Energy Security......Page 300 The Vision of an Energy Union......Page 303 Diversifying Energy Supplies with LNG......Page 307 Diversifying Energy Supplies with New Routes and Sources for Piped Gas......Page 310 Ensuring the Free Flow of Gas and Electricity Within the EU......Page 314 Helping Ukraine Strengthen Its Energy Sector......Page 316 Future Areas of US-EU Energy Cooperation......Page 320 9 Law Enforcement Cooperation......Page 324 Common Themes Emerge......Page 327 EU Efforts to Improve Security......Page 332 The Refugee Crisis......Page 336 Policing the EU’s External Frontiers......Page 338 US–EU Cooperation......Page 345 The Contribution of Europol......Page 348 Prospects for Further Collaboration......Page 359 10 Military and Security Cooperation......Page 364 The EU’s Military and Civilian Security Operations in Africa and Beyond......Page 365 The EU’s Common Foreign, Security and Defense Policy Can Support US Interests......Page 371 The EU’s Response to Growing External Security Challenges......Page 374 The EU’s Common Defense......Page 378 Part III Saving the Planet Together......Page 390 11 Climate Change and the Environment......Page 391 Differences in Transatlantic Views on the Environment......Page 395 US Leadership in Protecting the Ozone Layer......Page 397 The EU Emerges as the Leading Global Actor on Climate Change......Page 400 Transatlantic Frictions Over the Kyoto Protocol......Page 403 The Copenhagen Conference......Page 410 The Paris Conference......Page 415 US-EU Cooperation on Environmental Protection......Page 430 12 Foreign Aid and Humanitarian Assistance......Page 434 The Struggle to Contain the Ebola Outbreak in Western Africa......Page 435 Working Together on Other Humanitarian Challenges......Page 444 Working Together on Foreign Aid and Development......Page 446 Looking to the Future......Page 456 13 Conclusions......Page 459