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Macron sees the danger of authoritarian powers at the borders of Europe
French President Emmanuel Macron calls for the creation of a European army. Europeans should not "rely solely on the United States," Macron said in a radio interview.
Behavioral reactions in Berlin and Brussels
reFrench President Emmanuel Macron is pushing to found his own European army. Without a "real European army", Europeans could not defend themselves, said Macron in a radio interview. Faced with "Russia, which is on our borders and could become a threat", Europeans should "not rely solely on the United States". The federal government and the European Commission have reacted cautiously.
Macron justified his request by warning against "authoritarian powers rising and arming themselves at the borders of Europe". Europe must defend itself "vis-à-vis China, Russia and even the United States," he told Europe 1.
The withdrawal of the treaty of disarmament of the FNI with Russia announced by the American president Donald Trump is a threat for Europe. "Who is the main victim?" Asked Macron – and gave the answer himself: "Europe and its security".
The federal government and the European Commission have been reluctant to comment on the initiative of the head of the French state. Federal Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) said: "A European army must be created within the European Union and not outside it, for which we have created the European Union. 39 European Defense Union a year ago ". Macron continues to use Britain as a partner in European initiatives after Brexit, while skepticism is perceived in Berlin.
A spokeswoman for the European Commission stressed that the creation of a European army could only be a last step. If necessary, it could stand "at the end of the process" in favor of a "more visible and meaningful EU defense identity". The President of the Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, recently supported a European army in 2016.
Already last year, Macron had suggested creating a "joint task force" for crisis missions in Europe by 2020. However, this plan has been drastically reduced compared to the federal government .
Initially, a "European intervention initiative" had been launched with nine countries, including Germany, Britain, Spain and Italy. He should better network the staffs. Representatives of the member countries of this initiative met Wednesday in Paris, according to the French Ministry of Defense. For a German participation, there was initially no confirmation.
The demand for a "European army" is an old French will and dates back to the 1950s. The plan of Prime Minister Rene Pleven but was buried in 1954.
After the fall of the Wall, repeated attempts were made to strengthen European defense cooperation, including the creation of Eurocorps as a joint headquarters in 1993 and the formation of rapid reaction forces – the so-called battlegroups – for the 2007 crises.
Macron also suggested a common defense budget and doctrine during his European visit to the Sorbonne University in September 2008. The European Commission wants to create a common defense fund endowed with 13 billion euros for research and technology.
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