August 19, 2020

America Should Capitalize on Europe’s Unlikely Comeback from the Coronavirus

By Richard Fontaine

A few months ago, Americans were praying for Europe. As the coronavirus ravaged the continent, they watched the lockdowns in Italy, worried about infection rates in Spain, and sympathized with Brits when Prime Minister Boris Johnson became ill. European countries took health security into their own hands, leaving a coherent, continent-wide approach in the dust. Following several years of fractious discord, the Europe of 2020 appeared more distracted and divided than ever.

But then, as the United States descended into the abyss of the coronavirus pandemic, a strange thing happened across the Atlantic: Europe staged an unlikely, tentative comeback. This comeback was not only based on the health of its citizens but on a newfound political and economic unity, which could prove to be beneficial for America. If the momentum of this comeback is sustained, then it points to new opportunities in transatlantic relations. The winner of November’s presidential election would be wise to seize those opportunities.

Read the full op-ed in The National Interest.

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