The European Council on Foreign Relations

Madrid View: Europe’s Zero Doctrine

Date: 28th February 2011  |  Author: Jose Ignacio Torreblanca,

Categories: Europe and the world, Madrid view,

Revolutionary challenges require a doctrine to deal with them. Monroe and Truman came up with theirs. And Brezhnev imitated them and imposed order in Eastern Europe. Even Sinatra got one when Gorbachev proclaimed the “I did it my way” Doctrine. At our office in Madrid, our press officer Javier García suggests that Europe has adopted the “Garfunkel Doctrine” (remember “Sound of Silence”?).

The truth is that Europe has not developed a doctrine to deal with changes in North Africa. Or rather, it has got one: the Zero Doctrine. It wants to influence without interfering, protest without upsetting, condemn without imposing sanctions, support without risking, participate without paying.

In the market, only Coca-Cola has been able to survive offering a product with no caffeine and no sugar. Europe’s risk aversion fits perfectly here: it wants to enjoy the Coke of democracy and human

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