Strategic communication document presented by Poland on FAC with regard to transatlantic cooperation benefits

It states that the European Union and the United States enjoy the most integrated economic relationship in the world. If deepening economic and strategic integration of the European Union and the United States is to continue, it requires the understanding and support of publics on both sides of the Atlantic. This backing cannot be taken for granted. Obtaining that support requires that European and American elites listen to their publics, if only to learn how to talk with them about their self-interest in transatlantic relations.

It was underlined that the US media system has been unsettled by domestic actors who follow an authoritarian playbook and who feed into Russia's strategic goal by producing words and actions that can be used to attack democracy and the Western Alliances. Russian state media and online accounts tied to the Kremlin are currently pivoting toward the United States and the 2024 election for the White House. They also focus on spreading incendiary content about US immigration and border security. However, we should expect much more is to come as eroding support for Ukraine remains Russia's top priority.

Strong differences of opinion are visible among the political elites. In March 2022, almost half of Republicans said the US was not providing enough support to Ukraine, 11 percentage points more than the share of Democrats who said this. Today, that same share of Republicans (49%) say that the US is providing too much assistance to Ukraine.

Poland believes that we should not sit back idly while false narratives about the root causes of the war in Ukraine are being spread. About who is the victim here and who is the aggressor. About our goal in supporting Ukraine in its defence efforts and about Russian imperialism. We should also raise awareness among the American public about the size of European aid to Ukraine and how that effort helps save Ukrainian lives.

We underline that, within the next few months and beyond, the European External Action Service (EEAS), the EU Delegation in Washington, the European Commission, and all of us as Member States need to boost our strategic communication towards the US to demonstrate that we are still the most important and reliable partner for the US.

Poland proposes concrete measures that could include:

• Increased monitoring by the EEAS StratCom division and raising Member States' situational awareness of false narratives targeting the EU and its Member States in the run up to the US presidential election;
• Preparing common messaging, including a fact-sheet juxtaposing the European and American engagement numbers;
• Carrying out an up-to-date analysis of essential US opinion makers that can influence public sentiment or administration decisions with a particular focus on the most relevant media, think tanks (for example the US national network of more than 90 nonpartisan organizations affiliated with the World Affairs Council), but also trade unions in industrial centres where the EU Member States invest significant financial resources;
• Optimizing the resources and positions of the EU's delegation in Washington by reaching out to partners in the administration, the US Congress, opinion leaders, and groups at nationwide and local levels;
• Increasing synergy between all the EU Member States, including through a division of labour in reaching out to representatives of US administration, members of the US Congress, local politicians, academic centres, media, and think tanks;
• For this purpose, we recommend such measures as mapping of economic cooperation in the US;
• Launching a widespread media information campaign targeting the American public and addressing different social and age groups through traditional and social media in a thought-out manner.