ABSTRACT
In recent years a narrative about European–American relations had become fashionable and even commonplace. It held that the rapidly developing European Union (EU) was well on the road to a fundamental transformation in its relationship to the United States. Having expanded to twenty-five countries with a population of 460 million people, in an area extending from the Atlantic to the Russian border and from the Arctic Circle to the Mediterranean, and with a common currency and aspirations for a common foreign and defense policy, Europe would soon emerge as a powerful competitor to the United States.
