Just stumbled across an intriguing article in The Moscow Times (reprinted from the rather good Project Syndicate) by leading American international relations theorist (and former Carter and Clinton administration wonk) Joseph S Nye – intriguing because it’s a rare example of someone from the US taking the EU seriously. The usual response is to slag it off, claim it’s only months away from complete collapse, and point to the rise of China and India while taking the decidedly deterministic line that “Europe’s time is past”.

Or maybe I’ve just been reading too many Republican commentators.

Either way, check out the piece in full – it’s only short, and reads rather like a work in progress (has Nye got a book coming up on Europe’s place in developing international relations? I do hope so…), but raises some interesting ideas.