At the invitation of the Austrian Defense Attaché, Major General Jürgen Ortner, the former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Jim Townsend, discussed the current status of transatlantic relations with Washington, DC - based defense attachés from other European Union member states.

Key issues during this exchange on February 26, 2019 were the American view of the latest developments within the European Security and Defense Policy, burden sharing, and defense cooperation. All agreed that despite some disturbing factors, a close cooperation between the U.S. and Europe is essential to handle current threats and challenges successfully.