Seven years after his Europe speech at the Sorbonne, French President Emmanuel Macron dramatically renewed his appeal for more independence and defensiveness at the same place. The speech was designed as a wake-up call to the entire European Union, but Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) felt particularly challenged. Although Macron praised German-French cooperation several times, the gap between him and the Chancellor in key policy areas became abundantly clear. “There is a danger that our Europe could die,” warned Macron. He spoke several times about a necessary paradigm shift and made it clear that a “Europe of strength, prosperity and humanism” would have to stand up for its own interests much more robustly – especially vis-à-vis the USA and China.
Europe must free itself from its “strategic immaturity,” demanded Macron. Traditionally, it has relied on energy from Russia, raw materials from China and security from the USA. The president spoke out in favor of strengthening NATO’s “European pillar”. Scholz has repeatedly made similar statements. However, it became clear that Macron envisions a much greater separation from the USA. “We need Europe to have strategic credibility,” he demanded. It is imperative to strengthen the European defense industry. The motto must apply: “Europe first”. Here too, a paradigm shift is necessary. German arms purchases in the USA had repeatedly caused anger in France. Europe must also become a power that opposes American-Chinese bipolarity. Macron repeatedly described the USA and China as competitors of Europe.
“Good impulses,” commented Olaf Scholz
“France and Germany together want Europe to remain strong,” Scholz wrote in an initial reaction on the short message service X. Macron’s speech contained “good ideas on how we can achieve this.” Scholz had always denied any deep differences with Macron in the past. However, these are particularly evident in dealings with the USA. Regardless of Donald Trump’s threatened return to the White House, Scholz is counting on the continued existence of the transatlantic alliance and the reliability of the USA. “I think we have to trust that this is a long-term partnership,” he said on Wednesday during British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s visit to Berlin. He is “quite confident that nothing will change in the many years that we now have ahead of us and in the next decades.” “There will always be new presidents.”
The continued major differences over the right strategy towards Russia also became clear. Macron defended his call not to rule out sending ground troops to Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia. Macron said he stands by his call for “strategic ambiguity.” In February, Scholz sharply distanced himself from these considerations and made it clear that sending NATO troops to Ukraine was out of the question. Russia must under no circumstances win its war of aggression, Macron reiterated. This is a “sine qua non” condition for Europe’s security. In doing so, Macron is setting a significantly different tone than Scholz, who also emphasizes support for Ukraine but at the same time warns of a war between Russia and NATO.
There are likely to be reservations in Berlin when it comes to trade policy
In terms of trade and industrial policy, Europe must also assert itself more confidently against China and the USA and “protect its interests more clearly,” appealed Macron. It is necessary to protect one’s own economy from unfair competition and to strengthen one’s own industry through targeted investments and also through significant borrowing. Here too, massive reservations from the federal government are to be expected. The European Union did well during the corona pandemic and also responded unitedly to the Russian war of aggression, said Macron. But the following applies: “The battle is not yet won.” There is a “great risk that we will be left behind in the next ten years”.
Macron’s speech was a “justified wake-up call,” said the chairman of the European Committee in the Bundestag, Anton Hofreiter (Greens), who said South German newspaper. “We now need a European turning point. Chancellor Scholz must find an adequate response to the speech,” demanded Hofreiter. He expects the federal government, together with France and in the Weimar Triangle with Poland, to “fill these ideas with life. To do this, the financial resources must also be made available to invest in the crucial areas.” After his first Europe speech at the Sorbonne in 2017, in which he spoke out in favor of more European “sovereignty”, the then Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) owed Macron a substantive answer.