ABSTRACT
What is “transatlantic”? This question is non-rhetorical and non-trivial. If the transatlantic relationship is to remain the bedrock of the global economy at least in the coming decades, the term “transatlantic” itself needs refinement. This refinement is based upon both theoretical and pragmatic reasons. On the theoretical side, evidence exists for the expansion of the concept of “transatlantic” because areas of the Americas, the Mediterranean, and sub-Saharan Africa appear to fit the theorization of community that rests at the basis of the concept of transatlantic. Pragmatically, the daunting task of global governance, as suggested by Brian Murphy in Chapter 1 of this volume, requires a broader concept of transatlantic than in the past. For example, if the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a component of the security dimension of the transatlantic area, NATO itself has moved significantly beyond the original membership that spanned the North Atlantic because the alliance now consists of countries in East and Central Europe, with a commitment to extend the borders of the alliance to the trans-Caucasus region (North Atlantic Treaty Organization, 2012). Echoing Adrian Taylor (Chapter 4 of this volume), it is clear that the current and future arrangement of NATO hardly fits the traditional concept of transatlantic any longer.
