Germany

The fight between Apple and the FBI over whether or not an iPhone should be unlocked to better solve the San Bernardino shooting, underscores a larger international debate over the trade-offs between national security and individual privacy rights. 

The ongoing war in Syria has led to the worst refugee crisis since World War II. And now, many of those refugees are heading for Europe. 700,000 have made the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean so far and another 100,000 are expected before the year's end.

Recent terrorist attacks on Western soil, including the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris and the shooting in Garland, Texas, have galvanized people on both sides of the Atlantic to take stronger action to counter violent extremism in Muslim communities.

“Because we have employed so many of the options that are available to us to persuade Iran to take a different course, the window for solving this issue diplomatically is shrinking.” 
–President Obama during a press conference with British Prime Minister David Cameron on March 14, 2012

"Is it possible that a union, that is not past the point of no return, could start unraveling?"
– Charles Kupchan, Professor of International Affairs in the School of Foreign Service and Government Department at Georgetown University


The financial crisis in Europe has raised a question that seemed unthinkable a few years ago. The modern EU evolved from a union born in 1951 to ensure that Europe would never again experience the horrors of war. And in that regard, the European Union has been an unmitigated success.

“One of the most important lessons of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is that military success is not sufficient to win.” 
– Secretary of Defense Robert Gates

"In these environments, such as Afghanistan and Iraq, it isn’t a classical war of armies facing each other but rather it is a state and nation building, building institutions that serve the people." 
– US Representative to the U.N. Zalmay Khalilzad

America Abroad examines the 200 year history of America's relationship with Europe, with a look ahead at transatlantic relations following the dispute over the Iraq War, and a look back at the 1956 Suez crisis. The program includes a special conversation with European students.

Guests on this program include: