BERLIN, Nov 19, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday
urged a Franco-German push to make Europe a stronger and more confident
global player that could prevent “chaos” on the world stage.
Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have used a series of war
anniversaries to project unity as they push back against populist and
nationalist forces in Europe and Trump’s isolationist “America First” stance.
With half a year until European Parliament elections in which far-right
forces look to make gains, Macron made a passionate plea for stronger backing
from Merkel on a range of reforms to strengthen Europe.
“Europe, and within it the Franco-German couple, have the obligation not to
let the world slip into chaos and to guide it on the road to peace,” Macron
told the German parliament.
“That’s why Europe must be stronger… and win more sovereignty,” he said
at a ceremony to honour the victims of past wars and dictatorships.
Macron said it was Europe that had led the drive for green energy and
against climate change and was now most strongly pushing multilateral
approaches to trade, security, migration and environmental policy.
The first French president to address the Bundestag in 18 years, Macron
called for greater European unity in order for the bloc to meet future
challenges in an uncertain world.
He said Europe must not “become a plaything of great powers, must assume
greater responsibility for its security and its defence, and must not accept
a subordinate role in world politics”.
– ‘At crossroads’ –
Merkel said she agreed with Macron’s assessment that Europe stands “at a
crossroads”, before the two headed into a meeting to discuss a range of
policy challenges — from a joint eurozone budget to migration policy and
taxing Internet giants.
The German leader reiterated that she backed Macron’s proposal for a future
European army as a symbol of a united continent — an idea that has raised
Trump’s hackles.
Last week the American president mocked the plan by tweeting that “it was
Germany in World Wars One & Two – How did that work out for France?”
But German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen insisted Sunday that a
joint military force would need not just common equipment and training but
also “the political will to resolutely defend European interests when a
conflict breaks out”.
And France’s Minister for European Affairs, Nathalie Loiseau, told the
Journal du Dimanche “it is not a question of being against the United States
but of taking our destiny into our own hands to no longer count on others”.
– Weaker leaders –
Macron’s Berlin visit came a week after world leaders met in Paris to
commemorate the end of World War I a century ago.
Macron has repeatedly invoked the war’s horrors to drive home the message
that rising nationalism is again destabilising the world.
In a Berlin meeting with youths, Macron warned that forgetting history
means “to repeat the mistakes of the past”.
While strong on symbolism, the Franco-German partnership and European
reform push have been plagued by policy differences and the domestic troubles
of the two leaders.
Since a Franco-German joint cabinet meeting on Europe in June, challenges
have piled up with Brexit nearing and a budget conflict escalating between
Brussels and Italy.
Macron also addressed German hesitation on major reforms such as a large
common budget for the eurozone, saying that “this new stage is scary”.
He said it would require giving up some decision-making powers and pooling
funds but asked pointedly, “is it better to remain locked in standstill?”
The meeting came as both leaders are politically weakened, reducing the
traditional driving power at the heart of the bloc.
As Trump gleefully tweeted days ago, Macron’s once stellar approval ratings
have dropped off into the mid-twenties.
He now faces a wave of protests over high fuel prices by so-called “yellow
vest” demonstrators who charge that Macron, a former investment banker, is
neglecting the lower and middle classes.
And Merkel, after 13 years in power, recently announced the beginning of
the end of her reign by declining to stand again as leader of her centre-
right Christian Democrats (CDU).
She has vowed to serve out her fourth term, which runs until 2021, but many
observers expect Merkel could be brought down earlier by infighting within
the CDU or the unhappy three-party coalition she leads.