Now that the Lisbon Treaty has been ratified, Europe will soon have its first president. Belgian prime minister Herman van Rompuy seems to stand a better chance than Dutch prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende. But according to the European Council on Foreign Relations, a prominent think tank, Europe is completely on the wrong track.

RNW's senior foreign affairs analyst Bernard Hammelburg explains that the Obama administration was hoping a strong personality would emerge, so that they could talk at the same level. This would mean a welcome reduction in the number of one-to-one meetings the President has to schedule with the leaders of the larger European nations. The EU also needs a strong voice on major international issues such as climate control.