Those on the right who have already written off Europe as Eurabia may have another thing coming. As may those on the left who blame President Bush for having ruined America’s relations with our European allies. That, at least, is what we gather from the latest developments at London and Berlin.

In Downing Street yesterday, Gordon Brown delivered his first press conference as prime minister. He refused to rule out the use of military force against Iran, and he spoke warmly about the Anglo-American relationship. “I believe relationships between a British Prime Minister and an American President will be strong, should be strong and I believe will be strengthened in the months and years to come,” he said. “The American relationship for Britain is our strongest bilateral relationship and I am determined to do everything in my power to make sure that it is strong and effective in the work that it does, not just between our two countries but for the whole world.”

Mr. Brown went on, “Why is the relationship between Britain and America so strong? The relationship is so strong because we share the same enduring values about the importance we attach to liberty and to the dignity of the individual and working for a world where there is peace and prosperity for all the peoples of the world.”

Meanwhile, at Germany, as one German hostage was killed in Afghanistan and a second suffered in captivity, Chancellor Merkel took a firm line. “We will not react to demands from the Taliban,” she told German public television when she was asked about bringing German troops home from Afghanistan. “We will not give in to blackmail; that would be dangerous,” she said.

Much of the German press supported her position. “The Taliban and their murderous henchmen should take note: We won’t give up the fight against terrorism,” wrote the Axel Springer tabloid Bild. “We Germans especially should have learned the lessons of history: If you give in to the Hitlers and bin Ladens of this world you’re not serving peace. You’re encouraging war.” The center-left Süddeutsche Zeitung called for responding by sending more soldiers to Afghanistan, calling for “a long-term commitment.”

Words are one thing, and actions are another. But with British troops on the ground in Iraq and German troops in Afghanistan, both NATO allies have done more than merely talk tough. It’s a reminder that, naysayers on the left and right notwithstanding, the war on Islamist extremist terror is a transatlantic project, a Western struggle as much as strictly an American one. The coalition that President Bush has spoken of is no figment, and as he goes into the closing years of his presidency he enjoys better relations with the key European powers than he did at the start.