Berkley: Europeans hopeful about working with Obama
WASHINGTON -- U.S. partners in Europe are "overjoyed" at the idea of working with incoming President Barack Obama, though it is unclear how he might handle some major issues affecting the alliance, Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., said Monday after returning from a conference in Miami.
Berkley spent the weekend at a gathering of 10 U.S. lawmakers and 24 counterparts from the European Union. The Nevada Democrat is U.S. chairwoman of the Transatlantic Legislators' Dialogue.
The group's meeting in Florida was the first since the presidential election, which was followed by the public in many overseas nations perhaps as closely as it was in the United States.
"People in Europe feel they know Barack Obama," Berkley said.
"They are looking forward to a change, and there are a lot of issues we are confronting that have a serious impact on the rest of the world," she said.
On how Obama will handle some issues of importance to the allies, "that is the question, nobody knows." Berkley said, but she added the Europeans consider him refreshing and want to work with him. The selection of Sen. Hillary Clinton to become secretary of state also was well-received, she said.
Obama has discussed climate change and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but he has yet to indicate how he might handle relations with Russia, which Berkley said "are as cold as they have been since the end of the Cold War."
Obama also faces challenges in the Middle East, with Palestinian and Israeli elections scheduled for early in the new year and with Iran's continuing nuclear ambitions.
Europe's enthusiasm for Obama "is all tone," Berkley said. "It is all hope."
While they welcome Obama, European lawmakers "were very gracious about President Bush," Berkley said. "It was not, 'Thank God he is gone,'" she said.
Bush in his second term tried to work more closely with U.S. allies, but by then it was too late to change the popular perception that he was unyielding, she said.
Contact Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1780.
