At a news conference in Washington on Jan. 22, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was questioned about European opposition to the Bush administration’s tough stance against Iraq. Rumsfeld, a former U.S. ambassador to NATO, responded:

“You’re thinking of Europe as Germany and France. I don’t. I think that’s old Europe. You look at vast numbers of other countries in Europe. They’re not with France and Germany (regarding Iraq), they’re with the United States.”

French and German diplomats were, at that moment, toasting each other at Versailles on the 40th anniversary of the Elysee Treaty, the milestone reconciliation of the two nations. French Ecology Minister Roselyne Bachelot used a scatological euphemism to describe Rumsfeld’s remarks. German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer declared his country’s policy to be “a constructive contribution.” National Public Radio commentator Daniel Schorr criticized Rumsfeld for slighting “old Europe, as though placing more reliance on some new Europe.”

And then, like a miracle, the new Europe emerged.

On Jan. 30, the leaders of Spain, Portugal, Italy, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Poland, Denmark and the Czech Republic wrote a letter declaring their “firm and unequivocal message” of solidarity with the United States: “We in Europe have a relationship with the U.S. which has stood the test of time. Thanks in large part to American bravery, generosity and farsightedness, Europe was set free from the two forms of tyranny that devastated our continent in the 20th century: Nazism and communism.

“We know that success in the day-to-day battle against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction demands unwavering determination and firm international cohesion on the part of all countries for whom freedom is precious.

“We must remain united in insisting that (Saddam Hussein’s) regime be disarmed.”

This statement of solidarity from the “new” Europe revealed Rumsfeld’s remark to be a diplomatic, precision-guided neutron bomb targeting the anti-American chatter of Europe’s Axis of Appeasement while leaving the wine and cheese on the table.

Beyond words, these nations offered concrete support for the U.S. effort: troops from Britain; the use of bases in Spain and airspace over Italy; material support from Denmark, Poland and the Czech Republic.

The leaders of Slovakia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and predominantly Muslim Albania have all pledged support to the U.S. effort, Albanian Prime Minister Fatos Nano declaring his nation’s alliance with the United States against Iraq to be “total and unconditional.” Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern who, like the leaders of France and Germany was unaware the letter was being written, expressed his annoyance at not being asked to sign it. The letter from the “Gang of Eight” is only the latest manifestation of long-simmering rifts within current and future state of the European Union. While France and Germany are traditionally considered to be the “engine” of the EU – not least in Paris and Berlin – the collapse of the Iron Curtain 14 years ago forever altered Europe’s political and demographic realities. The combined population of the Gang of Eight is 232 million, while that of France and Germany is 143 million.

English, not French, is now the language of choice for EU institutions. Free enterprise and entrepreneurship, not German statism, are the hallmarks of the “Big Bang” of 10 nations eligible to become part of the EU in 2004: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Slovenia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Cyprus and Malta. With membership for Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey on the horizon, the old order of Europe and the engine that drives it is, quite literally, history.

France and Germany, however, continue to act as though nothing has changed. At the Elysee Treaty celebration, French and German diplomats unveiled their plan for a dual-presidency of the EU, a plan largely crafted without the consultation of their European neighbors. And at a NATO meeting on Jan. 22, France and Germany blocked a decision on whether the 19-nation alliance could provide indirect military assistance in case of war against Iraq.

The Gang of Eight letter was the direct result. “There’s a lot of resentment behind this,” a diplomat in Warsaw told the Wall Street Journal. “Part of its genesis is to say that Europe is not just France and Germany.” The geopolitical distinctions of Rumsfeld now appear much more astute, and the map of Europe suddenly looks a lot different than it did only one month ago.

E-mail: jmgur@swbell.net

© 2003 San Antonio Express-News