The European Union (EU) and the United States should building a "more dynamic partnership" to tackle new threats and challenges in the fast-changing world, president of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso said on Friday, Xinhua reported.
The remarks was made when the president delivered a keynote speech at the fifth Brussels Forum 2010, an annual high-level forum hosted by the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
To counter the argument that with rise of new powers, the transatlantic relationship has become less important and should just be one normal partnership among many, Barroso said that the EU-U.S. partnership was "special" as the two sides share common values, such as the rule of law, individual rights, democracy and freedom.
"Values do matter. They aren't just abstract ideas, they are the foundation of our constitutional orders. They guide our political behavior." he said.
He said that "it is safe to assume that in a world of rapid change, one thing will remain constant: we will continue to have more in common with each other than with any other great power. Ours is a natural partnership and it is only natural that we should deepen it."
Barroso acknowledged that in a power-shifting world, the EU-U.S. relationship should be more outward-looking and engage more with third parties, including emerging powers, such as China, India and Brazil.
He said that "growing economic interdependence and common threats to security require both reinforced bilateral collaboration with other partners and multilateral global management."
"I am convinced the Europe and the United States, great drivers of globalization can and should contribute towards the leadership which globalization needs," he said.