Why do they hate America, By Robert Kagan
 

Herein lies the essence of the trans-Atlantic split. Thanks in large part to American power, Europeans have carved out for themselves a paradise in which power is no longer relevant, in which new rules apply. Yet that paradise exists only because America does not always play by the same rules, thus challenging their pretensions to universalism.

Inevitably, both sides will seek to promote not just their interests, but also their sense of world mission. While the broad aims of these missions are identical - the promotion of a liberal, democratic world order - the means used to promote them only occasionally coincide. And as we've learned in recent months, they can be sharply and bitterly at odds.

 Over time, Europe may come to better appreciate that its unique and privileged way of life depends on an America that doesn't share that way of life. And America may appreciate that what Europe has accomplished is something worth cherishing - and fighting for. In the meantime, and that may be a long time yet, mutual incomprehension and all the tensions that go with it will be the order of the day

The writer is a columnist for The Washington Post and author of Of Paradise and Power: America Vs. Europe in the New World Order (Knopf).