Looking Back to the European Disputes over the Second Iraqi War: Lessons Learned from the Division of Public Opinion in Europe

In 2003, the differing stances about the war in Iraq created a major diplomatic crisis among European countries. Considering various clues which have steadily emerged, this paper refutes the relevance of the debate about weapons of mass destruction and analyses the real motivations for these distinct positions through Europe: the role of the US in the transatlantic relationship, expectations towards the EU and the weight of public opinion. Then, it examines how these intrinsic divergences of political views and interests explain the difficulties encountered in implementing the European Security and Defence Policy and concludes on the keys issues which need to be addressed.