The Transatlantic Relationship: The U.S., Germany, and Europe
Ambassador William R. Timken, Jr.
As prepared for delivery.
Thank you, Count and Countess, for the invitation to Shloss zu Guttenberg,
Lord Mayor Schramm, it is a pleasure to visit Kulmbach,
Over the past year and a half, Sue and I have had the opportunity to visit many fascinating locations and to learn more about the history and culture of the different parts of Germany. We have met many interesting and generous people from all walks of life. Sue and I are both optimists. But our talks with both government officials and regular citizens continue to amaze and inspire us.
The German EU and G8 presidencies come at a very critical time for the international community. The Chancellor has put forward an ambitious agenda for both these leadership roles. Under Chancellor Merkel’s leadership, Germany is looking outward and accepting its global responsibilities.
The meeting last month between President Bush and Chancellor Merkel was open and free-wheeling. I have attended all their meetings – and this was the best one yet. President Bush and Chancellor Merkel share many of the same ideas and political aims. The President very much appreciates the Chancellor’s contributions towards strengthening the transatlantic partnership. The combined EU and G8 presidencies provide an excellent opportunity for the United States and Germany, and all the members of the transatlantic partnership to move forward – as partners. We share common values. We have common concerns. It is appropriate that we work together to tackle our shared global priorities.
Our partnership is based on strong ties to the past. It is important that we build equally strong connections to the future. We are working more closely with schools and public libraries to broaden our contacts. One thing is certain: sustained dialogue, information exchange, and sharing of opinions are essential to any friendship.
Through our “Windows on America” initiative, we are exploring opportunities to encourage a more diverse segment of young Germans, including immigrants and disadvantaged people, to visit the United States. We have been very encouraged by the generous response from the private sector in support of this new Embassy exchange program. It is in keeping with the spirit of good corporate citizenship that characterizes the best companies on both sides of the Atlantic. Excellence is not measured simply in terms of profits. Economies flourish when people flourish. Economic growth, democracy, development and peace are more deeply connected than ever before. This is the basis of our 21st century partnership.
Earlier this month, I attended the Munich Security Conference. I think President Putin’s Cold War rhetoric made people on both sides of the Atlantic reflect very seriously on what the transatlantic relationship has accomplished in the past and how we are working together today for the future. I had the opportunity to speak with a number of Germans and Americans about the implications of the comments from Russia. One U.S. senator half-joked that Mr Putin’s remarks did "more in a single speech to unite Europe and America than anything we could have done in a decade.”
In a way, viewed in historical context, even just the participation of a Russian president at a Western security conference that had its origins at the height of the Cold War, is one of those "who would ever have thought" moments. Truly much has been accomplished since the Wall came down.
This year's annual conference in Munich was, I am told, the largest ever. Along with the Secretary of Defense and a distinguished U.S. Congressional delegation, four previous Ambassadors to Germany attended the conference. All of them – Robert Kimmitt, Richard Holbrooke, John Kornblum, Richard Burt – continue to be very involved with German-American relations in various capacities. Their participation attests to the ongoing high level of interest in maintaining strong U.S.-German and transatlantic ties.
Looking back, as Defense Secretary Gates pointed out, it seems clear that totalitarianism was defeated as much by ideas as by ICBMs, tanks, and warships. New strategic priorities have challenged the mission and identity of the Atlantic Alliance. The most effective weapon, however, is still our shared belief in political and economic freedom, religious tolerance, human rights, representative government, and the rule of law.
That commitment to common values is quite obvious if you look at some of the issues that we, as transatlantic partners, are working on. This is not the “unipolar world” that President Putin presented with "one single center of power, one single center of force and one single master."
Defense Secretary Gates used Afghanistan as an example of NATO’s “comprehensive approach” to military action in this era of unconventional and often global threats. This approach takes into account economic development, reconstruction and the development of civil society. It is based on coordinating security and development. It draws on contributions from NATO, the UN, the EU, NGOs, individual nations, and of course the Afghan people and their government. Nothing could be less unipolar.
On that note, we commend Germany for its support for the Afghan people. We very much appreciate that the German government would like to provide reconnaissance aircraft. The U.S. is proud to serve alongside such a strong ally. We appreciate the fact that NATO countries have stepped up. But clearly more is needed. We need more troops from our European allies. We need to remove all the restrictions that individual governments sometimes place on the NATO forces. These can inhibit the ability of a NATO commander to deploy them tactically. We also need more creative thinking about what can be done in key areas, such as police training, development assistance, and counter-narcotics.
On other security issues, there is broad agreement. Count zu Guttenberg, I would like to thank you personally for your support of common transatlantic security goals in the German parliament.
We are hopeful that 2007 will be a better year for Iraq. Earlier this year, President Bush announced a change to our strategy but our goal remains the same – to help the Iraqis achieve the objective of a country that can govern, sustain and defend itself. We may disagree about how we got to where we are in Iraq, but we all share an interest in preventing failure – a failure whose consequences would be felt in Europe as well as in America.
We also share similar goals with respect to Iran including encouraging reforms and curbing Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. We appreciate Chancellor Merkel’s strong support for the United Nations Security Council resolution on Iran. It was an important message to send Iran, that the free world wants there to be a peaceful future. We need to do all we can to apply sanctions that will turn Iran toward a path of peace and away from nuclear weapons.
At their meeting in January, the President agreed with the Chancellor’s suggestion to re-convene the Mideast Quartet. A meeting of the United States and its partners in the Quartet – the United Nations, Russia and the European Union – was convened in Washington on February 2. A follow-on Quartet meeting convened in Berlin this past week. Beyond a reaffirmation of the Quartet principles for a two-state solution to the conflict, these meetings are opportunities to discuss how each of the members can best work with Israelis and Palestinians on concrete programs designed to build institutions to that end.
The end of the Cold War changed our strategic goals but it has also had an effect on our economic relationship. Former Ambassador Robert Kimmitt is now the Deputy Treasury Secretary. He traveled on to an AmCham event in Frankfurt right after the Munich security conference. In his remarks, he looked back to his time as Ambassador. It was on his watch that a reduction of American soldiers started as the Cold War ended. But what he has seen since is that these soldiers have been replaced by an almost equal number of new jobs in American firms operating in Germany.
Overall, since the end of the Cold War, no two parts of the world have experienced economic integration faster and more intensely than the U.S. and EU. The United States and the EU share the largest trade and investment relationship in the world. Here in Bavaria, American companies comprise half of all the foreign company presence in Bavaria. Bavaria’s strongest foreign trading partner is the United States. We need to build on that relationship and enlarge U.S.-EU effort already underway to integrate the transatlantic economy. That includes speeding up regulatory cooperation and encouraging modernization in EU rulemaking.
U.S.-EU cooperation is also a driving force behind efforts to liberalize world trade on a multilateral basis. Trade is the best way to help poor nations develop their economy so that people can realize the benefits of wealth moving throughout their society. The President and the Chancellor have agreed to continue to further the dialogue on Doha.
This was one of the many issues that the President and the Chancellor discussed in Washington when they talked about the German agenda for the EU and G8 presidencies.
They also discussed strategies and actions to advance new technologies to promote energy efficiency and environmental protection. Both President Bush and Chancellor Merkel agree that the bottom line in any energy debate is the need to diversify our energy supplies in a cost-effective, environmentally responsible manner. We’re on the same page here. Around the world, but especially here in Europe, the issue of climate change shapes public attitudes about the United States. Unfortunately, for many people the debate begins and ends at the Kyoto Protocol. But that is factually not the end of the story. Part of my job as Ambassador is to get out and tell out the whole story. Many people believe that because the United States didn’t sign on to the Kyoto Protocol, we are not doing anything to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There are other ways to proceed. If you look at the latest UN statistics, our track record shows that we are actually doing better than Europe in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Overall, not just on issues relating to the environment, we need to do a better job of explaining what we are trying to do. A spirit of idealism shapes both American foreign and domestic policy. We need to strengthen that reputation. The best way for us to do that is to work together in partnership.
Thank you.
