America has done its bit, now it’s Europe’s turn

Barack Obama’s win yesterday signals, like nothing else could, that “America is back” – and back to deal with many of the world’s foreign policy challenges. After eight years of trying relations with the Bush administration, many European leaders have been looking forward to this day.

However, these expectations carry significant risks.  Many – mostly, but not exclusively, in Europe – see the election of Senator Obama as an opportunity to get all the things that George Bush did not agree with back on the table. But the President Elect will not dissolve the laws of international relations or abandon US interests.

Take climate change. Mr. Obama has said they will endorse a “cap-and-trade” system in the US, which the Bush administration has resisted. Yet on the question that matters most to Europe – a global agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol – he may not depart from George Bush’s position; that China and India must be part of any deal.