America and Europe after 9/11 and Iraq: The Great Divide

(Hardback)

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American foreign policy toward Europe is merrily rolling along the path of least resistance, in the belief that there is nothing really amiss with the European-American relationship that multilateralism will not fix. Not true, argues Kashmeri. The alliance is dead, cannot be fixed, and must be renegotiated. It has not grown to accommodate Europe's emergence as a major power. A kind of United States of Europe, with foreign priorities different from those of the United States, has arrived at America's doorstep. But America is still forging foreign policy for Europe using Cold War realities; both Democrats and Republicans expect the European Union to fall into step, and report for service as neededunder American leadership. Europe, however, has other plans, and as it becomes more powerful on the world stage, competing visions of European leadership have emerged. The Iraq War has brought them into stark relief. For example, as Kashmeri points out, the Atlantic divide over Iraq was more about French-British competition for leadership of Europe than it was about a division between American goals and European goals. He portrays British foreign policy as out of touch with reality, as a policy that has done a disservice to the United States as a result of the Blair government's exaggerated and self-serving view of the British-American special relationship. Kashmeri concludes with prescriptions for forging a new alliance based on a special relationship with the European Union. This agenda is inspired by the thoughts of the leaders who spoke to the author specifically for this book, among them former president George H. W. Bush, former British prime minister John Major, James A. Baker III, Wesley K. Clark, Brent Scowcroft, Paul Volcker, U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel, and Caspar W. Weinberger.

Reviews

Kashmeri, a fellow at the bipartisan Foreign Policy Association, strongly argues for the necessity of revitalizing the US-European Union political and strategic relationship to match their continuing economic relationship. His central argument is that the actions of neoconservatives, and in particular the George W. Bush administration, have through both hubris and ineptitude done great harm--though at this point not irreparable damage--to this relationship.Recommended. All readership levels. * Choice *
[T]he author argues a new dialogue between the United States and the EU, especially important because of their common interest in fighting terrorism. He emphasizes how important it is for the United States to end its special relationship with Great Britain, symbolized in the partnership between Bush and former Prime Minister Tony Blair. * Political Science Quarterly *
Much ink has been spilt regarding the differences between Europe and the United States over the Iraq war and Kashmeri, like many others, sees the split as having roots in the changing transatlantic relationship. Basing part of his analysis on interviews with such figures as George H. W. Bush, Gen. Wesley Clark, former UK Prime Minister John Major, former US Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, and former Spanish Foreign Minister Ana de Palacio, he argues that the Atlantic alliance has grown rotten and that the US needs a fresh approach that moves away from the tilt towards Britain and instead forges a special relationship with Europe as a whole and promotes multilateralism. * Reference & Research Book News *
The alliance between Europe and America is dead, commentator Sarwar Kashmeri maintains: it can't be fixed, and it must be renegotiated: that's the message of a title which considers different foreign policy priorities between the U.S. and Europe since 9/11, and divisions which grow ever greater as the years go by. America's trouble is that it's using Cold War strategies which are outdated in trying to handle changing European Union priorities and America and Europe After 9/11 and Iraq: The Great Divide charts these differences and offers foreign policy ideas which vastly revamp the relationships between the U.S. and the Union. Perfect for college-level libraries strong in international politics. * Midwest Book Review *
This slim volume punches well above its weight. Sarwar Kashmeri is steeped in the history of the last half-century of both European Union and transatlantic affairs, has reflected deeply on both, and has come up with an analysis that more resembles the elegant use of the stiletto than the crude swings of a pugilist.The recipe presented in the book to heal the transatlantic rift avoids the twin perils of trying to identify and redefine the common values shared by the two sides and offering prescriptions for revamping institutions. * Foreign Policy Association Book Review *
Kashmeri explains his perceptions of the sources of friction well, deftly interspersing his interviewees' comments to bolster his argument (the rather jolting candor of some comments, considering their sources, is a high point of the book). * Joint Forces Quarterly *
A leading national voice on European integration, and business policy, Kashmeri outlines the need for a new U.S./European Union alliance which will make America and the world a safer place, and repudiates the prevailing neoconservative view that a weakened European Union would benefit American interests at home and abroad. Despite the United States' diplomatically disastrous invasion of Iraq, Kashmeri describes realistic strategies to successfully achieve a new U.S./EU alliance and how such an alliance might salvage the unfolding quagmire in Iraq, and confront the worldwide roots of terrorism. * U.S. Newswire *

Author Bio

Sarwar A. Kashmeri has been recognized on both sides of the Atlantic as an observer and commentator on U.S.-European business and foreign policy issues since 1995. He is a Fellow of the Foreign Policy Association, for which he produces Global Currents, a bimonthly MP3 podcast, interviewing government and corporate leaders on foreign policy and business/public policy issues. He is a strategic communications adviser and business columnist, and divides his time between his Reading, Vermont, residence and New York.