III. Restoring Balance

This chapter outlines potential ways of redressing Europe’s impending balance of power crisis, and restoring an order that continues to command the loyalty and trust of EU and NATO member states. Three main, interrelated lines of action are identified: fixing the transatlantic ‘superstructure’; rebooting the European ‘infrastructure’; and checking Russia’s assault on Eastern and Central Europe. Key to this is a new grand bargain between the US and Germany – the two main referents in the transatlantic and European systems, respectively. However, special attention is also paid to the importance of the UK and France, and to their potential role as bridges between the US and the transatlantic superstructure on the one hand, and Germany and the European infrastructure on the other.