June 30, 2021
The Stakes are High
As German Chancellor Angela Merkel prepares to step down after almost 16 years in office, transatlantic relations, and especially US-Germany relations, remain uncertain. The administration of US President Joe Biden has made several overtures to Europe and to Merkel specifically in an effort to get relations back on track. In addition to rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, the World Health Organization, and the UN Human Rights Council, the Biden administration has re-started talks to bring Iran back into compliance with the international nuclear agreement, known as Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA. (Iran began to exceed the limits to uranium enrichment imposed by the deal after former President Donald Trump ordered the US withdrawal from JCPOA in 2018). To woo Merkel, President Biden reversed Trump’s decision to partially withdraw US troops from Germany and waived sanctions on some European companies involved with the controversial gas pipeline Nord Stream 2—a step that drew significant criticism from the US Congress and other domestic constituencies.
Underneath the veneer of goodwill remain persistent European concerns about the reliability of the United States as a partner, threatening to weaken transatlantic cooperation.
The Biden administration never expected that such steps would quickly repair relations after four years of Trump, but progress in revitalizing the relationship has proven more difficult than anticipated. The series of summits with NATO and the European Union were seen as a success on both sides of the Atlantic and were a step in the right direction. The message was clear: America is back and committed to its allies. Yet, questions remain about what tangible progress will come of the summits and where US-Europe relations will go from here. Underneath the veneer of goodwill remain persistent European concerns about the reliability of the United States as a partner, threatening to weaken transatlantic cooperation.
Read the full article from Internationale Politik Quarterly.
More from CNAS
-
The Future of Arms Control Part 2: The Case for Saving Global Arms Control
Podcast
This episode of Brussels Sprouts is the second part in our series on the future of the New START treaty and the viability of arms control between Russia and the United States....
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend
-
The Future of Arms Control Part 1: "No New START"
Podcast
On this week’s episode of Brussels Sprouts, we’re kicking off a special 2-part series on the future of the New START treaty and the viability of arms control between Russia an...
By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend
-
Defense & Aerospace Report Podcast [Washington Roundtable Jun 27, ’25]
Podcast
On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, former Pentagon Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, joins Defense & Aerospace...
By Jim Townsend
-
What’s Making Some Countries Daydream About Nukes Again?
Commentary
Yet the majority of nations that might decide to go nuclear are not rogue states, but U.S. allies and partners....
By Jon B. Wolfsthal
