Today we'll be hearing from Madeline Albright, the first ever female United States Secretary of State from 1997 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton.

She spoke recently at the European Strategy and Policy Analysis System annual conference.

So if you're keen to hear what she thinks about the current state of democracy in the West,

as well as global international relations, keep listening.

It goes without saying that 2020 has been an extraordinary year, filled with unprecedented

challenges.

Not just the COVID-19 pandemic, but ongoing threats to rule of law and democracy, substantial

international differences in tackling climate change, worsening trade relationships and the looming

economic fallout from the pandemic. However, Madeline Albright sees some glimmers of hope.

Despite the pandemic, huge numbers of people voted, and that is something that we should say

the resiliency of democracy. But she admits that the Trump era has been hard on democracy and has fueled growing

populism in the United States. As far back as his inaugural speech in 2017, President

Donald Trump was already touting his America first rhetoric. We assembled here today are issuing a new decree to be heard in every city, in every foreign

capital, and in every hall of power. From this day forward, a new vision will govern our land.

From this day forward, it's going to be only America first.

America first.

Many in Europe are hopeful that a Biden administration

will repair some of the damage done to the EU-US transatlantic relationship in recent years.

Although the EU-US trade in goods and services was valued at more than one trillion dollars in

2019, that didn't stop a tit-for-tat tariff war from escalating. In January this year, former

Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan travelled to Washington in an effort to repair relations.

The meetings that I've had are in the main very positive and productive. They confirm that there are powerful and

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