Reform and Renewal: Transatlantic Relations during the 1960s and 1970s

Catherine Hynes · Sandra Scanlon

Jun 2020 · Cambridge Scholars Publishing

About this ebook

Transatlantic relations underwent significant change throughout the 1960s and 1970s as post-1945 cooperation was gradually replaced by rivalry in the economic, defence and intelligence arenas. An increasingly vulnerable United States economy, together with a focus on détente, led the Nixon Administration to adopt policies which directly challenged European economic and security concerns.

However, this was also the time when inter-allied relations experienced significant rejuvenation. The rise of conservativism in the United States, no less than the debacle in Vietnam, augured new foreign policy priorities for American leaders. Coinciding with the renewed focus on economic liberalism on both sides of the Atlantic, the influence of conservatives in redefining international relations became increasingly obvious. 02

Drawing on recently declassified documents, Reform and Renewal offers a detailed analysis of the major events and themes in the transatlantic relationship. Focusing on the post-1960 era—a distinct phase in the transatlantic relationship—it provides an examination of the interplay between domestic political factors and the broader structural factors shaping relations between the United States and the countries of Western Europe. Providing a comparative perspective on key initiatives such as the Year of Europe, this edited collection will greatly enhance the existing literature in the field.

About the author

Sandra Scanlon is a Fellow at the Department of International History, London School of Economics, and a specialist on United States political history and foreign policy during the 20th century. Catherine Hynes, the author of The Year That Never Was: Heath, Kissinger and the Year of Europe, 1970-74 (Dublin: UCD Press, 2009) lectures on Anglo-American relations at University College Dublin.