Talk:Special Relationship (US-UK)

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[edit] Unparalleled?

"However, according to British author James Wither, the level of cooperation in military planning, execution of military operations, nuclear weapon technology sharing and intelligence sharing between the U.S. and UK is unparalleled."

Unparalleled even by US-Israeli sharing? AThousandYoung 02:10, 1 October 2007 (UTC)

Agreed. It is a rhetorical statement from a singular source, a British author. Nevertheless, it is referenced as such and while it perhaps is inaccurate as a statement, it is indeed properly cited. Agruably the United States has much closer military relationships and intergration with numerous other allies, Israel, Australia, other NATO members such as Canada (NORAD / NATO / OAS), with a near intergrated miltary for example. Overall, the submission is now very good and the "creator" has seemed to tone down the subjectivity. What is most interesting to me is the debate. The term "special relationship" was properly defined (and gratefully clarified and added to the intro here) in Churhill's original context as a special relationship between Anglo nations. While the term has evolved in a fascinating way in the UK, it hasnt elsewhere. It seems generally important to the British national identity, while it is often taken out of context to refer to the bilateral relationship with the US, it is seldom referenced by non-British media.

Interesting submission though I think it should stay as is under the heading "Anglo American Relations - the Relationship between the UK and the US." Objectively, this is where it belongs as the term "special relationship" neither historically or presently describes a single bilateral relationship. As noted, itis primarly used by British nationals to define a particular world view which perhaps is no more (or less) unique than the bilateral relations between any two friendly countries. As it now stands, good work by the author. As for placement, it is now under the appropriate heading.

[edit] Good article, but resembles personal journalism

Hmm...interesting and hugely important article; very well written. The nature and political importance of the US-UK 'Special Relationship', especially in the context of recent World events, is certainly worthy of substantial and accurate coverage in Wiki. However, I've thought a bit about this and have concluded that this particular treatment often resembles a piece of personal journalism rather than an encylopedia entry. No references are provided in support of subjective statements. I've removed some of the more egregious assertions, but a radical re-think is needed IMHO to separate fact from subjective/personal commentary.

AntsWiki 02:10, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Well obviously I don't entirely agree with you since I wrote a fair percentage of this article (all compliments, however, gratefully accepted, ta). The stuff about publicity seemed more appropriate at the start of the war but really the British contingent in Iraq is so small relative to the American deployment that it does seem like something of a beard, which is one of the reasons so many people in Britain are against it. It sometimes feels like our troops are in harm's way in Iraq just so the president can go on television and talk about the coalition of the willing.
That aside (oops, there I go again) if you would care to cite some more examples of my subjectivity I'd be delighted fix them. Or probably to argue about it a bit more and then fix them. But that's half the fun. Or indeed to suggest better ways of organising the page or whatever. I'm very keen for this article to be as good as it can be. I was quite miffed (though also rather busy) when it was cited for cleanup and I want to improve it.
--Mr impossible 12:29, 9 Nov 2004 (UTC)
The article is a lot better than when I last looked. Thanks!
The subject matter is difficult and contentious and so much more to add.
I heard an interesting BBC Radio 4 programme recently which described Nuclear Weapons Development. It seems that the Brits conned/hoodwinked the USA into believing that the UK had developed a thermo-nuclear device. But what they did was explode the largest A-bomb ever. The USA thought it was an H-Bomb and told the Brits the secrets.
--Dumbo1 02:15, 13 Jan 2005 (UTC)

Hallo! All I have time to do at the moment is to draw attention to the Wiki ethos of NPOV - an injunction of which I was unaware till only the other day. It makes perfect sense in a specific Wiki context and so I was glad to discover it because it lends weight to my earlier objections apropos skewed treatment. Certainly, your article is worthy of much more time on the part of people like me who would like to collaborate with you. For a start, unattributed statements in the article such as the now deleted: "That the United States does sometimes need Britain - albeit principally for the purposes of publicity..." is a purely subjective, possibly personal (even offensive) opinion. Similarly, "The relationship is supposedly based on cultural and historical ties..." Again: "Britain will continue to cleave to US policy even to the detriment of its own short term political interests in order to reinforce this central tenet of British foreign policy in the longer term". If you are quoting a newspaper or commentator, a citation should be produced, otherwise what you state is merely a POV, which might be OK if you happen to be a known expert, with credentials, but for all the reader knows (and remember, Wikipedia is supposed to provide FACTS) you could be a London taxi driver! Haha! Maybe a solution would be to insert quotations and authorities, from ALL points of view in order to provide balance, to leave the reader to make their own minds up, instead of steering them towards a particular conclusion? Am I making any sense?

I'll be back :)

AntsWiki 00:13, 11 Nov 2004 (UTC)

[edit] Special relationship vs. Anglo-American relations

There is a need for this page, but there is also a need for a page on Anglo-American relations. Some of what is in this page should be moved over. The "Special Relationship" is a political and media phenomena which is referred to in Britain. There is also the real more economic, social, military and cultural links that I would have thought belonged in Anglo-American relations.

--Dumbo1 22:46, 17 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Agreed, and so I started the separate page Anglo-American relations a couple months ago. Some of the content in this article should be moved there. The "special relationship" is not synonymous with Anglo-American relations. The "special relationship" is that part of Anglo-American relations which is cordial and warm; the term "special relationship" emphasizes the positive aspects of relations between the two countries. —Lowellian (talk) 15:13, Jun 14, 2005 (UTC)
The term "Special relationship", in international affairs, pretty much always means the Anglo-American relationship. On the same vein, however, I'm unsure the US relationship w/ Israel can be put on nearly the same level; That relationship has always been far, far, far more distant, cold, and stand-offiish. --Penta 1 July 2005 05:04 (UTC)
Also agree with you that "special relationship" is almost invariably used to describe the Anglo-American relationship. I'm confused by your comment's relevance to the earlier comments and why it's under this heading. The comments above do not make the claim that the "special relationship" is used to describe the Israeli-US relationship. The point that I was trying to make, and that I think Dumbo1 was also trying to make, is that "special relationship" describes one aspect—the positive, friendly one—of Anglo-American relations, and that some of the information in this article is more appropriate for the Anglo-American relations article. —Lowellian (talk) July 2, 2005 23:16 (UTC)
This is purely political. If anyone thinks America and Britain have the closest relationship in the world, they must be mad. England has a closer relationship even with Australia! and America with Canada. America and Britain fear each other, not love each other. Wallie 12:53, 13 September 2005 (UTC)
Well it is an article about diplomatic relations so it is going to be political. I think the point , as described above, is that this is a term used by diplomats from both countries. Whether it is the "closest relationship in the world" is fairly irrelevant as it is useful for both countries to describe their relationship thus. I don't know that they fear each other either, I think the relationship is probably better defined as complete incomprehension of the other's motives. On a slightly different note, please don't use England interchangeably with Britain as you'll irk a lot of Scots, Welsh and N. Irish that way! Leithp 17:40, 13 September 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Non-neutral sentence?

What's with this:

"Britain will continue to cleave to US policy even to the detriment of its own short term political interests in order to reinforce this central tenet of British foreign policy in the longer term."

Whoever wrote that may be correct, but that certainly seems like an opinion, rather than a fact. Is that a proper sentence for this article?

I'm quite new to this editing articles thing, so I figured I should ask.

-- Orporg

It is an opinion expressed as a fact, and not in line with Wikipedia's NPOV policy; however, it may be rewritten with a citation, as in "so-and-so makes such-and-such a claim". Feel free to make the change yourself; Wikipedia is a cooperative process! —Lowellian (talk) July 2, 2005 23:23 (UTC)


[edit] ?

What is it exactly - the relationship between the US and UK, or the relationship between the US and British Commonwealth countries. US/Canada and US/Australia have been described as "special relationship"s.

[edit] "Warm personal relations"

The bottom Bush / Blair bit says:

"Warm personal relations aparrently followed".

Well, they did, but this phrasing has a nudge and a wink to it. The Bill Clinton use of the word 'relations' is clearly brought to mind. There is a "conspiracy" theory that there is a full blown homosexual relationship between the two. Should this document allude quite so directly to this?

[edit] Glaring omission

It seems odd that there is no mention of the blair/clinton relationship. Not only are the two often said (rightly or not) to have enjoyed a genuine friendship, but they had obvious common ground in terms of their approach to both the substance and presentation of 'third-way' centre-left politics. Blair learnt many lessons from the 1994 campaign, and clinton was openly and actively supportive of labour in the run-up to Blair's 1997 victory.

[edit] external links

I am unsure why a link to a band that happens to share the name of this page is on it - should it really be there? I must confess to never having heard of the band, but that is hardly a case for it not being otherwise notable. It's out of place in what is essentially a politcal page. If no objections, I'll remove that link.LeeG 02:47, 17 June 2006 (UTC) Acch. Just noticed the bit in in the intro, have reverted page to previous edit to remove it.LeeG 02:50, 17 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Political cartoon

This political 'cartoon' is in the current issue of Private Eye, and I think demonstrates a sceptical view of the "special relationship" that is common among the British public. Might it be fair use to use it in this article, or could we perhaps ask for permission from Private Eye? Robin Johnson (talk) 13:06, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

I think you'd have to work very hard on fair use rationale on that one. Also, being from Private Eye, is it supposed to be funny? It's not. Mark83 13:30, 10 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] UK and France/Germany?!

As a UK resident I've never before considered my country as having a special relationship with Germany and France. In fact very often the complete opposite. In fact throughout the 80's and 90's the UK's relationship with those nations was anything *but* special - we vetoed dozens of EU laws and bills, opposed stacks of Franco-German initiatives, and remain one of the most Euro-skeptic nations in the EU. The UK government's relationship with the US government far outweighs any pro-Franco-German considerations. I think that line should thus be scrapped.Iamlondon 13:29, 1 September 2006 (UTC)

I agree with the sentiments, but which line are you refering to?
Xdamrtalk 13:37, 1 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Did the Special Relationship start before this?

In discussion with colleagues recently, it was mentioned that the 'Special Relationship' could possibly be traced to before Churchill's comments to the Jay Treaty which led to the Quasi-War where the Royal Navy and the United States Navy are shown to have helped each other out somewhat, sharing a system of signals by which to recognize each other's warships at sea. Also I have been told that the term Special Relationship, referring to US-UK relations can found on the tour of USS_Constitution in Boston. I am no historian - but are these claims founded at all? Just interested, that's all... --Chiefmoamba 10:41, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

An interesting point, but seeing as the US and UK went to war with one another after the period you're discussion (1790s) and that the British in fact burned Washington, I'd say the "Special Relationship" started later. Once could argue that a stillborn SR was stirring during the Federalist period, however.

--

I think you may be thinking of the "Most Favored Nation" status that the US enjoyed with the British Empire following the American Revolution and the original falling-out with France. As for the War of 1812, the British did burn Washington but only after American forces burned York (it was retaliatory, not an original affront to the US). The somewhat close relationship between the two nations, it would seem, picked up where it left off in the decades following the war, fostered perhapse by Britain's lingering paternalistic view of itself relative the US. There may be some merit in considering a much older origin to the so-called "special relationship" in cultural, political and economic veins for the purposes of this article. --JTM

[edit] Addition removed

"The Uk is a key ally of the US because of its military and economic strengths,i t currently spends more per head on the military than any other country, the 2nd highest spending with the 28th highest number of soldiers. This further shows the UK's focus on quality not quantity, however a blair speech on the 12th jan 2007 revealed an increase in expenditure which will obviously bring the two countries closer and closer together.[1][2]"

[edit] Explanation

  • "The Uk is a key ally of the US because of its military and economic strengths" - repitition
  • "it currently spends more per head on the military than any other country, the 2nd highest spending with the 28th highest number of soldiers. " - My back of an envelope calculations say US per capita defence spending is 1.56 billion per million citizens. UK is 1.06 billion.
  • "This further shows the UK's focus on quality not quantity, however a blair speech on the 12th jan 2007 revealed an increase in expenditure which will obviously bring the two countries closer and closer together" - Editorialising Mark83 21:09, 12 January 2007 (UTC)


"In July 2006, the economy of the United Kingdom was the fifth largest national economy in the world (measured by GDP). The economy of the United States was the largest national economy in the world. The US was the biggest single investor in the UK, and vice-versa (figures for 2004). This economic strength, together with Britain's influence as one of the "big three" in the European Union, has altered the relative US/UK balance somewhat. On the other hand, British commentators have implied that British support of American policy is rarely reciprocated when it is not directly in America's best interests, leaving Britain diplomatically isolated - for example during the Suez Crisis and at the July 2005 G8 summit under the Presidency of the UK, where Prime Minister Tony Blair signally failed to persuade President George W. Bush to sign up to the Kyoto Protocol - the US citing "harm to the United States' economy" as their principal objection." I have taken this out because the second point is already dealt with more briefly later in the article, and the first point seems obscure and whatever it means is probably not in the right place (if it's about the extent of trade links as part of the special relationship then this probably needs a full subsection, while if it's about the balance of economic power between the two countries changing then that needs to be better explained and probably put later on too). Deipnosophista (talk) 08:58, 1 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Special Relationship: a wounded beast?

The author of the page says: "This interweaving of the combined US and UK military forces (as well as shared intelligence detailed below) is an indication that the 'special relationship' is likely to continue for some time."

With a certain qualification, I disagree.

In the past, and beginning with the End of Empire following the Suez fiasco, Britain realized it could not 'go it alone' without the aid of the US. Since then, the UK has sought a partnership to influence US policy decisions. In effect, Britain became the London Bridge between Europe and the US. Kendall Myers was correct when he said, "London Bridge is falling down."

While I believe that the special relationship is likely to continue, perhaps it's best to add that it probably won't continue as it has in the past. For all of his successes, most notably peace in Northern Ireland, Blair's legacy will be mixed with a negative hue given the perception that he was a 'poodle' to the Bush administration. Future UK leaders will be loath to have the same shadow fall over them. I think what is more likely is that the UK will cast its own foreign policy much the way France pursued a more independent foreign policy in the wake of Suez (pulling out of NATO and pursuing nuclear weapons). I think historical, cultural ties will be of importance between the US and the UK, but to a lesser degree.

Suez and Iraq, then, will be bookends of the Special Relationship: Suez was the end of the beginning and Iraq is the beginning of the end.

I think it is up to American leaders to see the value in having a bridge to Europe, especially how that US and European policy (human rights, foreign policy, defense, etc.) are so very different. The Special Relationship may not be over but it is surely a wounded beast.

-- SAISer

That's very interesting. However this space is for discussing changes to the article and as is this information is not admissable. You would need at least one respected author etc. to quote for such a bold statement. Mark83 09:15, 23 April 2007 (UTC)
Mark, don't you think it's a little strange that the passage "Although the United States maintains a very close economic and military relationship with Canada (see NAFTA and NORAD), as well as with other countries such as Mexico, Japan, Israel and Australia, the level of cooperation in military planning, execution of military operations, nuclear weapon technology sharing and intelligence sharing between the U.S. and UK is unparalleled." comes from a published article with a title that implies that the "special relationship" is weakening in the 21st century? No offense to the wikipedia article writer, but that's cherry-picking quotations since the thesis of the cited article isn't addressed. Let me put it this way: you can't cite that there is a close relationship, but ignore the writer's point that the relationship is weakening and then later say in your own entry that the relationship is going to continue for some time. So you see, it isn't the user SAISer (or whoever started this discussion) who needs to produce evidence to back-up his assertion (resource #1 already agrees with his thesis it would seem), it is the person who is asserting that the close relationship is likely to continue. 137.238.172.73 01:28, 6 May 2007 (UTC)—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 137.238.172.73 (talk) 01:28, 6 May 2007 (UTC).
I don't follow your logic. The quotation is accurate - it doesn't matter what the article goes on to say, it says that the US/UK relationship in those areas is unparalled. That is a fact. I don't agree that that's "cherry picking" the article - the author would appear scitsoprenic if he argued the US/UK relations was unparalleled and then went on to say it wasn't! As for the thesis of the article - it goes on to talk about the defence relationship and says that US/UK capabilites are diverging (technology gaps etc) and that the UK would be better off abandoning its nuclear detterent and ploughing the huge sums saved back into conventional forces to make it a better ally of the US. However here's the central point of my argument - the article says US/UK relationship in those areas is unparalled and backs that assertion up very well in my opinion. As for the rest of the article not being represented - that is neither Wikipedia's duty nor is it appopriate - the rest of the article is an argument (a very sensible one in my opinion) but still just an argument. Further the sentence in question (that uses the citation) does not argue the relationship is likely to continue, hence there is no contradiction as you suggest. Mark83 21:36, 6 May 2007 (UTC)
We must not be on the same page here. First of all, I never doubted the accuracy of the quotion, and yes -- it most certainly does matter what the article "goes on to say" (read: what the conclusion of the article is). No offense or anything, but its naive and shows glib to suggest otherwise. I don't think you're seeing the glaring inconsistency that I'm addressing in regards to so-called cherry picking. Towards the end of the History and Overview section, the article author writes that, "This interweaving of the combined US and UK military forces (as well as shared intelligence detailed below) is an indication that the 'special relationship' is likely to continue for some time." How can you not see a problem with this when citation #1's abstract states (and I directly quote) that, "The paper concludes that changing US strategic priorities and further reductions in Britain's military capabilities are likely to erode the perceived value of the Anglo-American defence partnership on both sides of the Atlantic. " I guess you didn't read the "history and overview section" since you didn't see the contradiction...? Do you understand now? It isn't a matter of personal logic, its a matter of simple, clean-cut reality.
If you write an essay in a literature class saying: "David Bevington says that, 'Shakespeare was the greatest English writer', and this means that writing for theater is the highest art" and your works cited page takes the Bevington quote from an article entitled "Shakespeare was an absolute wonder in an otherwise drab, vulgar Elizabethan theatre crowd", you are definately not properly conducting your research.
So again, I ask, why is it permissible for the statement that the special relationship is likely to continue for some time without any sort of citation despite the fact that citation source #1 completely (and academically) debunks that glib notion? 137.238.172.73 07:14, 9 May 2007 (UTC)
OK, I see what you mean. My argument has been that it is perfectly acceptable to say "the level of cooperation in military planning, execution of military operations, nuclear weapon technology sharing and intelligence sharing between the U.S. and UK is unparalleled.[1]" and use James Wither's article. My point being that even though he does conclude that the relationship is in danger in the future, he is clearly making the point that the relationship was, is and will be in the near term, unparalleled. I did not realise (read: I missed your point) you had a problem with the history and overview section. Of course something like that should be cited. Having contradictory cited articles can be good - provides a wider spectrum of opinions. However having an uncited statement which is contradicted by another citation in the article is unacceptable. Sorry about my mistake which has forced you to take up more of your time than necessary! Mark83 10:17, 9 May 2007 (UTC)
That's okay -- I'm sorry too, I acted like a dick about it (I was up all night studying) 137.238.172.73 18:02, 9 May 2007 (UTC)
Nothing to be sorry for! Like I said, missed your point (which was pretty clear). Mark83 21:43, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

Just added an apposite quote to the Present Status section from the present British Foreign Secretary to the effect that the relationship with the US is Britain's 'most important bilateral relationship'. PolScribe 12:35, 27 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Recent Visit By Queen

Perhaps someone should add a section on the recent visit to the U.S. by the Queen.

[edit] Gordon Brown

Should someone perhaps mention Gordon Brown under current status.

[edit] Public Opinion

I think the recent additions under Public Opinion are poor: both are far too long, and the IRA one refers to events in the 1980s when US policy was different (2001 had something to do with this, no doubt). I propose to shorten them considerably. Deipnosophista 12:37, 11 July 2007 (UTC) I have now done so Deipnosophista 17:16, 11 August 2007 (UTC)

I am totally new to this, but whoever contributed the following paragraph is obviously (a) a US citizen (b) a Bush supporter and (c) a moron. Please disregard whatever he or she says in the future. Majority opinion in the UK is that the USA in general, and George Bush in particular, are international pariahs, if not fools. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.13.200.224 (talk) 23:01, 29 April 2008 (UTC)

I agree, I think this section of the article is to strongly biased towards the seemingly European viewpoint. To me it seems to be railing on the United States gov. and stating over and over again how the United States is oppressing the policies of the UK. It should be completely removed or an American viewpoint should be added with emphasis on the opinion part, so it doesn't seem like Americans are stepping all over smaller countries. I happen to know that not all people from the UK have such bad views about the US, and this should included somewhere in the article, maybe a more positive and unbiased article would better explain this sort of "special relationship" that the US hopes to maintain with the UK. Alevins5 --65.28.137.156 (talk) 05:00, 5 December 2007 (UTC)

I think the weasel words classification here is a misunderstanding and have removed it: all the statements in this section are sourced, and do not qualify for that description. I also disagree with Alevins5's views above: one of the most important issues about the so-called Special Relationship is that perceptions and descriptions of it are so different: to put it very crudely, as I see it the term is used widely by UK politicians to lay claim to influence over the US government and by the UK media following them, and little by US politicians and media (many of whom do not see a special relationship at all), while events which seem to undermine the claim to a special relationship have a strong impact on elements of UK public opinion since they seem to show that politicians' claims to its specialness are dishonest. It is not therefore POV to explain this: in fact it is the conflict between the points of view which is the main subject of the article. I therefore suggest that the dispute tag should also be removed. Deipnosophista (talk) 14:32, 12 December 2007 (UTC)

I just read this article today and was surprised at the slant in this section. Although Deipnosophista explains appropriately that it is not POV to explain that UK public opinion has shifted, the section itself is not yet NPOV. Sourcing and including public opinion polls, especially those at the bottom of the article, is wholly appropriate and important. However, listing individual incidents is both arbitrary and unnecessarily weights the article. Further, the beginning of the section and many of those incidents listed are full of original research. While I agree that all of the facts are well-sourced, in many instances, the author of this section takes those facts and makes fairly strong conclusions about them that the sources themselves do not make. As Wikipedia NPOV guidelines state, this is original research as it is not letting the facts speak for themselves. As it is, I removed a few of the most obvious "original research" statements that had been unsourced. I also tagged the section for original research until I have additional time to evaluate each source individually see if they truly due make such conclusions. Please do not remove this tag. I promise that I am not one to simply tag and leave the article. I will be back to finish what I started. --Jdcaust (talk) 19:37, 29 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Move back to Special relationship?

"Special relationship" is a common term in the UK press, to the extent that it's not POV. The article seems to have been renamed unilaterally - unless there's a sensible discussion somewhere that I've missed, I think it should be moved back. Robin Johnson (talk) 21:36, 4 December 2007 (UTC)

I agree: the term (as the article itself says, it dates back to Churchill) is a venerable one and the only sensible title for the article. I suspect that the person who renamed the article is American: that really only reinforces the point! Deipnosophista (talk) 14:29, 5 December 2007 (UTC)

Agreed. The whole point of the article is to discuss the nature of the 'special relationship' and unpack it as term: where it originated, whether or not it exists and what might be said to constitute it. Moving the content on makes absolutely no sense. I would fix it myself but I've no idea how. Could someone switch it back please? --Mr impossible (talk) 20:36, 16 December 2007 (UTC)

Can we have some help from an administrator here, please? It looks as if the unilateral move to this title has no support, but it is not possible for a non-admin to move it back again. Deipnosophista (talk) 20:16, 17 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Anglo-American relations vs. Special relationship

If it's about Anlgo-American relations merge it there, if it's about the history of the phrase move it back to "Special relationship". In it's current title it doesn't seem to mean anything. Kevlar67 (talk) 02:59, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Canada's special realtionship

Plenty of media and academics also refer to Canada-US relations as "special" so it's not unique to Britain. Plus I think France and Germany's relationship with each other has been described as "special". Canada:

Here's another gem from the 1950s

Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent, for example said that while "the special nature of our relationship to the United Kingdom and the United States complicates our responsibilities..." H.H. Herstien, L.J. Hughes, R.C. Kirbyson. Challenge & Survival: The History of Canada (Scarborough, ON: Prentice-Hall, 1970). p 411 Kevlar67 (talk) 06:13, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Special relationship

I went ahead and made a new page at Special relationship because this was taking too damn long. Kevlar67 (talk) 23:32, 17 January 2008 (UTC)

My suggestion is that the info on the origin of the phrase abd Churchill's speech be moved there.Kevlar67 (talk) 23:35, 17 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Bilateral/Multilateral

I'd like to suggest that the statement in the "History and overview" section of this article claiming that Winston Churchill was not referring to a bilateral "special relationship" in his 1946 "Iron Curtain" speech is incorrect, or at least misleading.

It would have been entirely natural for british imperialists of the day such as Churchill to refer to their home nation using phrases such as "the British Commonwealth and Empire", since in those days it was an empire and not just a small group of islands off the coast of mainland Europe as it is today. It is quite clear what Churchill actually meant by the phrase from the rest of the speech, such as in the sentence immediately following his first use of the term "special relationship" where he refers to "mutual understanding between our two vast but kindred systems of society". Later on he also refers to the possessions "of either country all over the world". He is indeed referring to a bilateral relationship between the British Empire and Commonwealth (as a single entity) and the US.

So while it is true that he does not explicitly refer to a US-UK relationship, I believe it is incorrect to claim that he was not referring to a bilateral relationship. He just wouldn't have singled out the "UK" in those days because his "country" consisted of more than just the UK.

Edfud (talk) 04:19, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

This remark is evidently correct. Deipnosophista (talk) 06:24, 30 April 2008 (UTC)