"Europe can no longer rely on the United States for its security," French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday. "It is up to us today to take our responsibilities and guarantee our own security, and thus have European sovereignty."
Macron was speaking to a gathering of French overseas ambassadors, outlining his diplomatic agenda. "I want us to launch an exhaustive review of our security with all Europe's partners, which includes Russia," he said, arguing that at present France is "paying the price of several decades of a weakened Europe." Now, he added, "France wants a Europe which protects, even as extremism has grown stronger and nationalism has awoken." Macron will travel to Denmark and Finland to promote this message.
The French president's comments echo those of German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who argued in an op-ed last week that Europe must "take an equal share of the responsibility" for its own defense and "form a counterweight" to Washington.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
England’s ‘dysfunctional’ children’s care systemIn the Spotlight A new report reveals that protection of youngsters in care in England is failing in a profit-chasing sector
-
Cider farms to visit this autumnThe Week Recommends With harvest season fast approaching, spend an afternoon at one of these idyllic orchards
-
Endangered shark meat is being mislabeled and sold in the USUnder the radar It could cause both health and ecological problems
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
