European Institute

(October 7) Notwithstanding a “buy America” requirement, European railroad engineering firms are lining up eagerly and in force to enter what they see as a modern day “gold rush” to get a stake in the U.S. high speed rail market, fueled by President Obama’s $8 billion in stimulus funds.  So far, 13 routes in a wide geographic area, including California and Florida, have been proposed.  See recent European Affairs article raising the curtain on this push.

On September 23, 2010, The European Institute held a seminar with European and American experts to discuss Bridging the Global Digital Divide: Prospects and Challenges for the Expansion of Satellite Broadband.  Organized in cooperation with the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (ITSO), the meeting focused on the vital role that broadband technology can play in effectively spanning the digital divide and assessed the myriad challenges to refurbishing and building the civilian space infrastructure necessary to meet rapidly expanding global digital needs.

The Obama administration has unveiled a broad set of national space policies that emphasize the President’s desire for a fresh approach to international cooperation in the space community – possibly including arms control accords about space. Until now, the U.S. has been a lone hold-out against the calls for such treaties concerning space and the goal of progress on “demilitarizing” space.

On March 17, 2010, The European Institute held a special breakfast meeting of its Transatlantic Roundtable on Transportation regarding transatlantic cooperation on transportation security. A delegation from the European Parliament’s Transport Committee, including Chairman The Honorable Brian Simpson (S & D Party, UK), The Honorable Mathieu Grosch (European People’s Party, Belgium), The Honorable Saïd El Khadraoui (S & D Party, Belgium), and The Honorable Gesine Meissner (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, Germany) spoke about their visit to Washington and current civil aviation security issues in the European Union. Michael Scardaville, Director for European and Multilateral Affairs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, provided a U.S. perspective on these pressing security matters. The main topics of discussion were the second U.S.-EU civil aviation agreement (Open Skies II), the U.S.-EU passenger name records agreement, privacy and human rights issues with the implementation of full body scanner in airports, the overall approach to civil aviation security, the increasing importance of high speed rail in the U.S., and the importance of the U.S. and EU to coordinate policies and procedures to ensure security on both sides of the Atlantic. A high emphasis was placed on increasing dialogue between the U.S. and EU on unresolved issues of contention. Passenger privacy and the protection of data are especially big concerns for Europe, and the U.S. and EU will continue to work together to try to find a holistic approach to providing security.