The EU, the US and us
From Mr David Watkins Sir: Your leading article (6 October) points out the huge contradiction between the PM's enthusiastic pro-Americanism and his enthusiasm for the EU. The EU is naturally anti-American. The dream of good 'Europeans' is to create a superpower which will challenge America's global hegemony. But in two ways you are unfair.
Firstly, Mr Blair is no more schizophrenic than any British PM since Macmillan. All have made the preservation of our `special relationship' with the US the supreme aim of foreign policy. All — including Lady Thatcher — have sought to bring us closer to `Europe'. Secondly, the US itself has created this contradiction. Our most compelling reason for abandoning our distrust of 'Europe', joining it and staying in it has always been to please Washington, which wants its most reliable ally urging policies favourable to the US from inside the EU.
So our `European' policy must always fail. We cannot leave the EU lest we become less useful to the US and damage the sacred 'special relationship'. Within it we will always be mistrusted as toadies of the Americans. Theoretically we could escape from this dilemma by imitating the sturdy independence of Switzerland, Norway and Iceland. Realistically this is never going to happen, unless some Islamic terrorist hijacks a plane and takes out the entire FCO establishment.
David Watkins
Cardiff
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