Macron warns: "The future of Europe must not be decided in Washington or Moscow"

Paris/BrusselsHours before the start of the extraordinary European summit that will serve to debate The European plan to rearm itself in the face of the new geopolitical situation, the President of France warned on Wednesday evening that the world has entered "a new era" and Europe must react. "In the face of this world full of dangers, continuing to be a spectator would be madness," said Emmanuel Macron in a television address.

In a serious tone, the President of the Republic – who has taken the European leadership in the midst of the crisis caused by the President of the United States, Donald Trump – has called on the EU countries to massively reinforce the community's defence against the distancing of Europe and Trump's rapprochement with Russia. Most countries on the Old Continent are watching helplessly as the US negotiates a peace agreement for Ukraine without consulting Brussels or Kiev and are not prepared to sit back. "The future of Europe must not be decided in Washington or Moscow," Macron warned.

The Elysée announced on Wednesday that the President of France, the British Prime Minister and the President of Ukraine could soon travel to Washington, although it did not specify whether it would be for Macron, Starmer and Zelensky to present their peace plan to the US President. In his speech, the French head of state insisted that when there is an agreement for the ceasefire in Ukraine, European countries will send their troops to guarantee peace.

Threat to Europe

The tenant of the Elysée Palace has once again warned of the danger to Europe posed by Moscow. "Russia has become, at the time I speak to you and in the years to come, a threat to France and to Europe," he said bluntly. Macron has recalled that Russia continues to rearm and it is no longer science fiction that it could attack the community territory. "Who can believe in this context that today's Russia will stop at Ukraine?" he asked.

The President of France has called for increased defence spending by EU countries and has urged the opening of a "strategic debate" on nuclear deterrence. Paris would be willing to protect the entire community territory with its nuclear weapons. In Europe, only France and the United Kingdom have atomic weapons.

European summit

European leaders are clear that, in the face of Trump's return, they must increase their military autonomy and stop depending on the Pentagon, both for the security of Ukraine and for the security of Europe as a whole. Thus, with this objective in mind, the heads of state and government of the European Union are meeting again urgently this Thursday in Brussels, where they will try to mark the first steps on the path to rearmament of the continent. Zelensky is also expected to attend in person.

On the table is the plan presented this Tuesday by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. The most notable measure it includes is the relaxation of fiscal rules; that is, that military spending does not count when calculating the deficit of the Member States, which currently must be a maximum of 3% of their gross domestic product (GDP).

Specifically, Brussels estimates that governments will have room to increase the money spent by 1.5 percentage points more than their respective GDPs, which in total add up to about 600 billion euros. In addition, Von der Leyen proposes that the EU guarantee loans to member states for a total value of 150 billion euros to boost investments in defense.

However, diplomatic sources assure that this plan has the majority support of member states and that, in fact, it is only the basis on which the leaders will negotiate. Therefore, they do not completely rule out further measures to increase military financing, such as the creation of new Eurobonds. However, the sending of European peacekeeping troops to Ukrainian territory as a security guarantee for Putin to respect a potential ceasefire does not have broad approval.