I have never accepted that premise - although of course it is essential that we remain alert to the risks. Frankly I am surprised by those who go on to suggest that with the removal of our common security threat there is no longer a basis for our continued relationship. We need only look at some of the big challenges we face to realise that these are best faced in partnership with each other. For example, EU enlargement is of course an important EU issue - but our joint approach to the newly democratised nations of Central and Eastern Europe has paved the way for these countries to join the international community through their EU membership. Or when we look at the enlargement of NATO then it is the partnership between the US and Europe that will ensure, on the one hand, a smooth transition for the new countries while reassuring Russia on the other that we pose no threat to their own security.
Trade is roughly in balance, an important indicator of the commonality of our two economies.
One in 12 jobs for US factory workers are in an EU firm. US companies employ 3 million workers in Europe. Put simply, our economies are so intimately linked that we do not have a choice between disengagement or further integration when it comes to our respective markets. Together the US and the EU account for over one third of world trade in goods, and almost half of world trade in services. It is that critical mass within the global economy that makes the transatlantic marketplace so significant to the multilateral trading environment.