PARIS (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron advised on Monday that the billions of euros of taxpayer cash invested in Europe’s army spending plans must not be utilized to acquire just American tools, promoting even more financial investment in home-grown support sectors.
Speaking mins prior to the commencement of united state President Donald Trump, that has actually whined that Europeans do not pay sufficient for their support, Macron claimed the continent must invest much more.
But he included, in a New Year address to army leading brass: “We can’t raise debt together, spend more for our defence to subsidise the industry, wealth and jobs of other continents.
“When we claim ‘allow’s invest even more for our militaries’, in several nations it suggests, method frequently, ‘acquire even more American materiel’.”
France, which has a large defence industry, has often complained when other European Union members have opted to buy U.S. weapons when French or European alternatives exist.
Germany’s decision in 2022 to launch the “European Sky Shield” air-defence system with U.S. and Israeli hardware, ignoring a Franco-Italian alternative, particularly angered Macron.
Such concerns have long been dismissed as self-serving by countries that have relied on the U.S. security umbrella since at least World War Two. But Trump’s more aggressive stance has made EU members more receptive.
Macron said Europeans should also simplify the European defence industry. Europe has 47 different industrial platforms for its naval industry while the U.S. has only six, he said.
He called for more joint European weapons development, even without French companies in the lead, adding: “We will not constantly be the European champs. But at the very least we’ll make sure the European champs have a worldwide reach.”
Macron said France now had “Europe’s most effective military” and met NATO’s military budget target of 2% of GDP, but could not rest on its laurels at a time when the U.S. might withdraw troops from Europe.
And he suggested that 2% might not be enough ” when the globe is going off track”.
Macron also said Russia would pose a security challenge for Europe and the wider world for a long time, even if there was an end to the war in Ukraine, which Trump promised to end within 24 hours of becoming president.
“Let’s not trick ourselves, this dispute will certainly not be settled tomorrow. Or the day after tomorrow,” he claimed, including that tranquility in Europe called for Europeans to be at the negotiating table.
(Reporting by Michel Rose; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
