Washington, Feb. 5, 2021 (Lusa) – The Portuguese chairmanship of the Council of the European Union can facilitate reconciliation between Europe and the United States by providing "adult dialogues" on points of union and disagreement, international relations expert James Lindsay said on Friday.

The expert, vice-president of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), warned that the new US administration, under Joe Biden's presidency, will take months to put new foreign policy strategies and initiatives into practice, as members of the new president's cabinet are still to be confirmed and all those who will be part of the administration have to be sworn in.

James Lindsay, who was speaking at a press conference, nevertheless felt that Portugal could take cooperation between the US and the European Union (EU) forward in the first half of this year by facilitating discussions and talks on the most important challenges ahead, so that the new strategies are up to date and move on to common priorities.

"Portugal can be important in facilitating what we know is going to happen: many transatlantic conversations about what we share in common, what we see as common challenges and opportunities, and also by having adult conversations about those issues where we do not agree," he said.

In his opinion, it will be during the summer that new initiatives between the United States and the EU may appear, at the same time as Portugal leaves the presidency of the European Council, "but unplanned events could change a lot".

"In Europe, there is an important degree of diversity on a large number of issues, there is also diversity in reflecting to what extent Biden will be able to deliver on his promises and to what extent Europe will want to accept Biden's offers," he added.

"Portugal's role in this position is to facilitate the conversations in a productive way that takes us forward in cooperation," James Lindsay said, adding that he has a great appreciation for Portugal.

A former professor of political science at the University of Iowa, Lindsay warned that there was still a lack of clarity in President Joe Biden's international strategies and that time was needed for the whole team to be complete.

"During the campaigns you paint visions of what can be done. The art of governing is to look at the details and connect that vision of the world you expect with the particular challenges you face," he said.

He added that opinion polls show that a large part of the US population thinks that their children will inherit a 'less prosperous' country and that the country is not on the right track, so the President's top priority in 2021 will be domestic policy.

EYL/AYLS // AYLS

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