Two Ambassadors on Transaltantic Relations
On October 26, 2005, the Institute hosted aq panel discussion on the transatlantic relationship (Two Ambassadors on Transatlantic Relations), with John Bruton, former Prime Minister of Ireland and current Ambassador of the European Union to the United States; and Rockwell Schnabel, former Ambassador of the United States to the European Union. The panelists were introduced by the discussion’s moderator—journalist and former New York Times columnist, Anthony Lewis. Bruton emphasized the importance of the European Union to the United States: “It’s an important market, an important investor, an important guarantee of democracy, and it is a useful partner.” He said that despite its problems, “it has been an engine for change and remains as vital an engine for change as ever.” Schnable agreed that the European Union is “enormously important,” even if 70% of Americans don’t know what it does. He said there is a need for greater understanding across the Atlantic: the US and Europe may have differences, but they have a “responsibility vis a vis the rest of the world to work together.”
