The transatlantic relationship, keystone of the global order since 1945, is now under intense pressure. Sharpening divisions over trade, technology, culture, and climate change, compounded by the looming question of the future of America’s security guarantee to Europe, threaten a head-on collision. This panel will deliberate on the winners and losers in this emerging confrontation.
Is Europe the new frontline in America’s culture wars? Does it face the choice of either aligning with the current US administration’s cultural agenda or enduring a transatlantic decoupling that pushes it towards a China that does not share its values?
Is the US salami-slicing Europe by selectively engaging with its EU partners? What implications does this have for the future of European unity? Has Europe been excessively dependent on US guarantees and become incapable of surviving as an industrial or security actor on its own?
Can Europe wean itself off from economic interdependence with China? Will it even feel the need to do so if the transatlantic alliance frays beyond repair? Who will win the battle for the soul and treasury of Europe: Washington DC, or Beijing?
Speakers Kishore Mahbubani, Distinguished Fellow, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore Theresa Fallon, Founder and Director, Centre for Russia, Europe and Asia Studies, Bruegel, Belgium Benedikt Franke, Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Munich Security Conference, Germany Peter Grk, Secretary General, Bled Strategic Forum, Slovenia James Carafano, Senior Counselor to the President and E.W. Richardson Fellow, The Heritage Foundation, United States of America
Moderator
Tara Varma, Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution, United States of America