A New Ambition for the European Union: ‘Power’
President Emmanuel Macron of France laid out plans for a Europe that is “master of its own destiny.”
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| Pool photo by Ludovic Marin |
PARIS — President Emmanuel Macron, in a rare news conference, called on Thursday for the European Union to change from a “Europe of internal cooperation to a powerful Europe active in the world, fully sovereign, free in its choices and master of its own destiny.”
Speaking on the eve of the six-month French presidency of the European Union, which begins Jan. 1, Mr. Macron said the slogan chosen for this period would be “relaunch, power and belonging.” Power is not a word often held up as a goal by a union that emerged from the ashes of war.
The president’s assertive tone over a two-hour meeting with journalists, the first half of it taken up by his own speech, reflected his determination to forge “European sovereignty” as the only means for the continent to count in the 21st century between an autocratic China and a United States whose focus has moved away from Europe.
Many Europeans have become convinced of the unreliability of the United States as an ally and protector, and of the economic and ideological threat from China — reasons to build a more independent Europe. But how ready other European states, especially Germany, are to embrace Mr. Macron’s vision is not clear.
