French President, Emmanuel Macron has described the Russia-Ukraine war as dangerous for the security of Europe.
This came as Macron outlined his vision for a more assertive European Union on the global stage at the Sorbonne University in Paris.
He is quoted as saying, “The principal danger for European security is the war in Ukraine, the sine qua non for our security is that Russia does not win this war of aggression.”
Warning that military, economic, trade and other pressures could weaken and fragment the 27-nation EU, Macron said that there is a risk “our Europe could die.”
“We are not equipped to face the risks,” Macron added.
On a continental scale, this awakening is still too slow, too weak in the face of the broad acceleration of the rearmament of the world,” Macron said. “We now have uninhibited regional powers that are also building up their capabilities — Russia and Iran, to name but two. Europe is encircled.”
“Europe will not be a geopolitical priority for the years, the decades to come, however strong our alliance,” the French president said.
“Europe must defend what’s important for itself, with allies or alone,” he urged.
Also, Macron called for a boost in Europe’s cybersecurity capacity, closer defence ties with post-Brexit Britain and the creation of a European academy to train high-ranking military personnel.
“There is no defence without a defence industry … we’ve had decades of underinvestment,” he said, adding that Europeans should give preference to buying European military equipment.
“We must produce more, we must produce faster, and we must produce as Europeans,” he said.
He called on the EU to deepen European defence cooperation in a “paradigm shift” and suggested France’s nuclear arsenal could provide security guarantees to the EU.
“How can we build our sovereignty, our autonomy, if we don’t assume the responsibility of developing our own European defence industry?” Macron asked.
Macron said Europe risked falling behind economically in a context where global free-trade rules were being challenged by major competitors, and he called for a reduction in red tape on small and medium-sized businesses.
Moreover, the French President said that Europe “must show that it is never a vassal of the United States and that it also knows how to talk to all the other regions of the world.”
“The era when Europe bought its energy and fertilizers from Russia, had production in China, and entrusted its security to the US is over,” Macron said.
He added, “The rules of the game have changed.”
“Whichever way you look at it, the United States have two priorities; Themselves. That’s fair enough. And the Chinese matter. Europe is far behind. It’s not a priority for their geopolitical view.”
Emmanuel Macron
Macron Criticizes UK’s Rwanda Bill
Also on Thursday, the French President criticised the controversial Rwanda plan during his speech on the future of Europe at Sorbonne University in Paris.
Macron called Britain’s plan to send Channel migrants to Rwanda the “politics of cynicism.”
“I also do not believe in this model that some people want to put in place which means that you go and look for a third country, for example in Africa, and send our immigrants there.
“This is a betrayal of values, and it will just lead us down the path of new dependencies on other third countries.”
Emmanuel Macron
It is not the first time that Macron has attacked Britain over its asylum policy.
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