The monthly meeting of EU foreign ministers was expected this week to discuss French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner’s proposal that the EU adopt a round of tougher sanctions against Iran, even before a consensus on a third UN Security Council resolution is found. Despite France’s activism and signals that other European countries are prepared to contemplate this step, objections from Austria, Germany and Italy meant that EU ministers for the time being merely agreed “that the EU will consider what additional measures it might take in order to support the UN process and the shared objectives of the international community, and invited the relevant Council bodies to provide timely”. However, this is not the last word on sanctions. British Foreign Secretary David Milband told reporters after the EU’s meeting Monday that “There’s a very strong view that the diplomatic track was the right track but it had to have teeth.”

The G8 summit’s focus on energy security reflects a common concern, across the Atlantic. But beyond similar preoccupation with global warming and high oil prices, much remains to be agreed upon, especially when it comes to the Middle East – the world’s main supplier of oil and a significant supplier of gas. It is no exaggeration to say that transatlantic views of energy security are affected by the same tensions characterizing, four years after the invasion of Iraq, transatlantic diplomacy on the Middle East. As Washington grapples with the emerging challenge represented by a nuclear-armed Iran – a major oil producer in a strategic location – it looks as though the potential for diplomatic differences remains high and the chances for a united front are commensurately low. However, a sense of a new chapter offered by the election of President Sarkozy in France and the elevation of Gordon Brown to Prime Minister in Britain suggests a chance of better prospects.

This week European and U.S. leaders met for a one-day EU-US summit in Washington.  While disagreements remain between these key allies in several areas, particularly climate control, the parties highlighted their coordinated efforts to press Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program as a sign of strong ties. The most promising aspect of this coordinated strategy to deal with Iran is a multilateral, graduated and targeted sanctions’ regime that is already showing signs of success.  For it to be fully successful, however, international consensus on the next round of sanctions – due May 23 – must be stronger still; the sanctions must have sharper teeth; and they must be accompanied by outreach to the private sector...