U.S.-Spanish Relations in the 2lst Century
by Edward L. Romero, U.S. Ambassador to Spain
(This article appeared in El País, Madrid, January 16, 1999)
On Monday, I had the privilege to host a reception for the hero of the day in Spain, Pedro Duque, for the hero of today and earlier days in America, John Glenn, and for the five other members of the STS-95 space mission, including a Japanese astronaut. It was inspirational to meet these astronauts and to learn about what they accomplished while working so closely together on the Discovery. Their cooperation is emblematic of how close U.S. ties with Spain have grown. Many of the experiments they conducted, designed to improve industry and medicine in the 2lst century, are also mirrored in transatlantic efforts to build a better future for us all.
Pedro Duque's valuable participation on the STS-95 crew was only the latest manifestation of the close ties between our countries. In fact, our shared roots go back to the first permanent European settlement in the United States, which was founded by Spanish colonists in 1598 in my own home state of New Mexico. My wife Cayetana and I are honored to be descendants of those first brave settlers. Since then, the United States and Spain have strengthened still further the ties that unite us.
Today, our nations are linked by more than history and the Hispanic heritage which flourishes in so many parts of my country. Our countries are also allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and collaborators in bringing democracy to the countries in the East through the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Likewise, the U.S. has come to rely on the leadership of the Aznar Administration in the European Union to advance our shared objectives, both within the EU's borders, and in areas as far away as Bosnia, the Middle East or Cuba. In 1999, there will be a series of summits bridging the Atlantic that will offer us the opportunity to set our agenda for the next century.
The leaders of NATO's 16 allies will meet on April 25 and 26 to celebrate the Organization's 50th anniversary. They will toast its success in ensuring Western Furopean security and stability, and the triumph of our democratic values. They will also cap the process begun here in Madrid in 1997 by welcoming the Alliance's first new post-Cold War members -- Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. Our leaders wiIl make it clear that the door remains open for more new members in the future.
One of the most respected persons in Spain, NATO Secretary General Javier Solana, will play a prominent role at the summit. Together with the other leaders at the summit, he will help define the future direction of NATO. We want to build an Alliance that is not only larger, but also more flexible, committed to collective defense, and capable of dealing with a broad range of challenges to Alliance interests -- whether from weapons proliferation, or from instability beyond NATO's territorial borders. We have already laid the groundwork for such cooperation in Bosnia, where American and Spanish soldiers labor shoulder to shoulder with those from other nations to maintain peace. And, as we build this NATO of the 21st century, we must also build further on our new, cooperative relationship with Russia and the Ukraine.
It is evident that when Europe prospers, America does so as well. U.S. trade with the European Union is bigger than our trade with Japan and Canada combined. Half of all the goods and services produced in the world originate in the U.S. or the EU. When we act together, we can promote global prosperity. The United States strongly supports the enlargement and further integration of the European Union for this very reason. We congratulate Spain and the EU on the successful launching of the euro. We believe, Iike you, that this achievement, and the responsible economic policies that made it possible, will ensure economic growth and promote further investment, trade, and job creation.
In our efforts to improve our own well-being, however, we must also look toward our neighbors and partners. Spain's openness, and its historic and linguistic ties to the Americas have made it one of the principal economic powers in Latin America, an area of critical importance to the United States. The emerging Spain-U.S.-Latin America trade triangle holds great promise for all of our nations, and we should work in the 2lst century to strengthen this further.
We also must be frank with each other. There will be times when we will disagree. As our nations work together to increase trade, and given our broad concurrence on security and economic issues, we can find formulas for resolving our differences -- be they bananas, the Libertad Act, or other issues.
After all, ties between the U.S. and the EU are based on broadly shared interests. They extend to the need to cooperate to solve global problems such as terrorism, narcotics trafficking and other international crimes, or environmental degradation. They are based on the conviction that by working together, we can assist other nations' efforts to achieve political peace and stability. Recognizing the complexity of our priorities, the United States and the European Union launched an initiative right here in Madrid in 1995, the New Transatlantic Agenda, which addresses these concerns. It is a dynamic agenda which has helped us build important bridges of communication and cooperation. We can shape it further at the U.S.-EU summit in Bonn on June 21, and into the future, to meet our changing needs.
The OSCE is working for many of these same aims. It is well known for its work on human rights and democracy. Felipe González mediated the Serbian election crisis in late 1996 under OSCE auspices, and Javier Rupérez led OSCE electoral monitoring missions in Bosnia and other parts of the Balkans. The OSCE wiIl also monitor Milosevic's compliance with his commitments in Kosovo. But while the OSCE's work in the Balkans is the stuff of front pages, its quiet and effective diplomacy elsewhere has helped prevent conflicts, for example, by mediating citizenship disputes in Latvia. At the OSCE summit in the fall in Istanbul, and as we look to the future, we will calI more and more on the OSCE to solve problems not only in Europe, but also in the Caucasus and Central Asia.
I have laid out an ambitious agenda here. But looking back at what Spain and the United States have accomplished, at what the European Union has achieved, and at what our transatlantic cooperation has made possible at the last half century, I am convinced it is an agenda well within our reach for the 2lst Century. I am honored to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Spain, at a time when -- like Pedro Duque and John Glenn -- we are shooting for the stars.
U.S. Mission in Spain