CIAO DATE: 08/03

The United States, the European Union, and International Human Rights Issues

Abstract

As pillars of the transatlantic community, the United States and the European Union often talk about their shared values derived from their common heritage in the western liberal democratic tradition. Both claim to base their domestic and external policies on their values; and both play a role in international affairs. Their common values suggest that they would support similar policies on international human rights issues. Yet on the international stage they have surprisingly different approaches. This paper will analyze areas of commonality and divergence in United States and European Union policies on international human rights and examine the implications of these differences for human rights and for transatlantic relations.

In the first and second sections, the paper will outline the basic tenets of the human rights policies of the United States and European Union. In the third section, the paper will examine U.S. and EU actions in the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR). In the fourth section, the analysis will address how the U.S. and EU approach global human rights issues that arise outside the UNCHR. The fifth section will explore the extent to which human rights policies are manifested in U.S. and EU development policies. The paper will conclude with recommendations for areas of future U.S.-EU cooperation on human rights.

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