Why We Do It

• Europe is U.S.’s most important commercial partner in the world. The U.S.-EU de facto “common market” generates roughly $2.5 trillion in total commercial sales a year.
• Europe is the largest recipient of U.S. investment and the 2nd largest market for U.S. exports (after Canada). U.S. assets in Europe are worth $3.3 trillion—about 60% of all U.S. foreign assets.
• Europe accounts for 43.1% of global merchandise exports and 42% of imports.
• European companies are by far the most important source of “in-sourced” jobs in the U.S., with almost 4 million U.S. workers directly on the payroll of European-owned companies.
• Leading economic forecasts for Russia support the view that rapid and sustained economic growth is a realistic possibility. The country’s stable macroeconomic situation provides an excellent basis for the reform necessary to secure its long-term prosperity. Likewise, Ukraine is an economy with major potential which has enjoyed several years of macroeconomic stability and growth which continues to be driven by both exports and investments.
• In addition to the major economies of Russia and Ukraine, the vast Eurasian landmass includes the 9th largest country in the world by area (Kazakhstan), enormous untapped energy reserves and some of the fastest growing economies in the world. The region is evolving as a new—and radically distinct—market that has great potential for substantial growth, or conversely, as a destabilizing factor for the economic powerhouses surrounding it.
• The U.S. and Europe have important common economic objectives such as joint stewardship of most multilateral institutions and development banks and an interest in fostering growth and stability around the Region.