TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS are plagued by conceptual differences, the role of American power perhaps foremost among them. Lately, though, the role Turkey might play in an expanded European Union has become a point of some contention. The American foreign policy community has long viewed Turkey from a geostrategic perspective, whereas their Europeans counterparts tend to view Turkey from a cultural and socioeconomic prospective. And while the rise of the European Union and the fall of the Soviet empire have drastically altered the face of Europe, a consensus on the role of Turkey remains elusive. In Washington’s eyes, Turkey has transformed from a Cold War bulwark against Soviet aggression into a critical “bridge” linking the industrialized Christian West to the pre-industrial Muslim East. Instead of theoretical suppositions, Europeans envision nearby Turkey as their version of Mexico–full of promise, yet mixed with concerns about culture, immigration, security and aid.