President Macron’s address to the European Parliament was supposed to be a highlight of France’s six-month EU council presidency. Instead, his remarks have caused tensions in the transatlantic relationship.
Last Wednesday, Macron argued that Europeans should "work on proposals to build a new security and stability order in Europe", first among themselves and then within NATO. Europe could then use these discussions as a basis for frank negotiations with Russia. Critics accused Macron of dividing and weakening the West at a critical moment in the negotiations between the US and Russia on Ukraine.
Although Macron could have been more specific on what these discussions entail, NATO allies should think twice about rejecting his proposal for more EU security discussions in the future.
Not all the criticism levelled against Macron is justified
Macron has not always been good at consulting his allies before making big foreign policy statements.
NATO allies have still not forgiven him for calling NATO "braindead" in an interview with The Economist in 2019. Likewise, many EU countries were angry when he proposed a new strategic dialogue to Moscow before discussing it inside the EU Council. It is no surprise that countries are suspicious of Macron’s proposals and interpreting them in light of what he did in the past.
But as Joseph de Weck notes, Macron is not proposing to bypass NATO or the OSCE and set up alternative talks with Russia. Instead, he is arguing that the EU should try to use the next six months to advance security discussions first within the EU and then within NATO. Only then should Europe consider how to engage Russia - and on what basis. The programme of the French EU Council presidency is also explicit in that there should be complementarity between the EU and NATO - and the French Ministry for Europe and foreign affairs has since doubled down on France’s commitment to NATO. His proposal for new discussions may seem vague, but it is undeniably transatlantic.
According to de Weck, by focusing solely on Macron’s comment for a "new security order", rather than the whole speech, critics fail to notice the subtle shift that has taken place in France’s policy toward Russia over the last two years. Yes, France still believes in talking to Russia, but it also believes this engagement should be European - rather than France-led. France supports talks in the EU, NATO but also the G7 and the OSCE, which are being chaired by Germany and Poland respectively.
Macron believes Europe must do more in the field of security
Macron’s comments are also consistent with what he has been saying for the past five years.
He believes the EU needs to get real about European defense - and fast. Europe can no longer rely exclusively on the US’s security umbrella to guarantee peace on the continent. Growing US-China tensions means that the US will need to be more focused and present in Asia. For years, the US has been asking Europeans to increase their defense spending. This has very real implications for how the US and Europeans respond if Russia invades Ukraine.
He also believes that Europe should decide what happens in Europe. This has often been seen as an attempt to distance France and Europe from the US - a view that Paris rejects. For France, it’s more about making sure that European countries get to shape if and how they intervene in conflicts in Europe and its immediate neighbourhood. It’s also about making sure that Europeans have an equal say in NATO and, in this case, have a greater role in shaping that transatlantic approach toward Russia.
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