Par ailleurs, les Américains sont en général déroutés par le processus de décision complexe et lent de la politique extérieure commune qui leur paraît fort peu efficace.
Although the United States and the European Union share a common history and the same commitment to democratic values, their current political and commercial interests, on the other hand, do not automatically converge. Moreover, the Americans are generally disconcerted by the slow and complex decision-making process of the common foreign policy, which they believe to be rather ineffective.