Partners across the Atlantic?

Abstract

As the transatlantic relationship moves further away from the Cold War context that defined it for many years, it also becomes, by definition, less of an exclusive relationship. The common interests of Canada, Germany, and the other transatlantic partners are shared by other states around the world. The values and common identity that were always said to define the Atlantic community have become at once more exclusive (the European Union) and less exclusive (the community of democratic states) but also, absent the ideological conflict of the Cold War, perhaps less relevant. What, therefore, might the future of the transatlantic relationship look like? Grand projects like the new transatlantic marketplace still exist, but as StormyAnnika Mildner points out, interests diverge as much as they overlap, and European Union cooperation with Canada is often an afterthought to its relationship with the United States. Existing regional institutions, and most notably the European Union, complicate matters as well. As the EU develops into a global actor, it acts as an extra party to every relationship, a player whose vision is potentially different than that of any single member state. With an eye to its potential to colour policy, Stefan Ganzle and Steffi Retzlaff examine the way the European Union is portrayed in the Canadian media.