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The European Union doesn't have a unified foreign policy, and it cannot project power like the US, because it does not have a unified military;
But it is a regulatory superpower. EU is a $15.6 trillion GDP market, to sell anything, you have to pay attention to their regulations.
But it is a regulatory superpower. EU is a $15.6 trillion GDP market, to sell anything, you have to pay attention to their regulations.
Britain is now out of that market, but it will have to abide by EU regulations. EU will not adopt British regulations, the power asymmetry is stark.
France, on the other hand, is in a pretty good position. It is the EU's major military power & 2nd largest economy.
France, on the other hand, is in a pretty good position. It is the EU's major military power & 2nd largest economy.
To understand how powerful EU's regulatory power is; a farmer in Iowa, may not particularly like the idea of not using certain pesticides on his crops - but he has to, if he's to stand a chance of selling them to a $15.6 trillion market.
Britain's economic future is playing a subordinate role to the US economy. No "ifs", no "buts". All the talk about "CANZUK", "The Commonwealth" and "The Anglosphere", is useless Empire nostalgia.
They will sign a lop-sided trade deal with an unsentimental US.
They will sign a lop-sided trade deal with an unsentimental US.
As far as the US is concerned, Mexico is a more important trading partner than the United Kingdom. All appeals to the "Anglosphere" and other associated nonsense, will not change that basic fact. Americans tend to be hard-nosed about these sort of things.
