Emmanuel Macron insisted yesterday that Europe should "strengthen" id and sovereignty, to the purpose of defending protectionist insurance policies in key areas, resembling infrastructure and cyber safety.
Emmanuel Macroninsisted yesterday that Europe should "strengthen" id and sovereignty, to the purpose of defending protectionist insurance policies in key areas, resembling infrastructure and cyber safety. The French president gave a speech on the Nexus Institute, in The Hague, in the course of the first day of the state go to to the Netherlands.
Macron's speech was interrupted for 2 minutes, initially, by the protest of a number of younger folks within the viewers, a fairly uncommon occasion for a overseas visitor of this rank. The protesters criticized him for the pension reform and his alleged inaction within the face of the local weather emergency.
"The president of violence and hypocrisy," one banner learn, in English. "I believe we have now misplaced one thing: the place is French democracy?" mentioned one of many younger folks. "He ignored the Parliament, when will he hearken to thousands and thousands of individuals on the street?", mentioned one other younger man, earlier than the safety service took away the disruptors of the occasion with expeditious means.
As typical, the French head of state, who loves dialectic, tried to elucidate himself to his critics, calmly, and advised them that France is a democracy and that it could be at risk if the selections taken by representatives of the folks can be questioned of their legitimacy by those that disagree. He then defended the pension reform as a result of he considers it "important" and recalled that the retirement age in different European nations is greater than 64, the brink set by the brand new regulation.
After the incident, Macron continued with the arguments in favor of European sovereignty, which, based on him, has change into much more crucial because of the double disaster of the covid pandemic and the warfare in Ukraine.
The speech in entrance of the Nexus Institute served to finish what Macron mentioned on the weekend, after getting back from China, in a controversial interview with the financial journal Les Echos. In these statements, the French president warned that European states should not be "vassals", however should change into "a 3rd pole" between america and China. Macron distanced himself from "the logic of blocs" and spoke out towards "the extraterritoriality of the greenback", that's, towards the hegemonic position of america' foreign money within the world economic system. This clear demarcation by Macron of the American ally created irritation on the opposite facet of the Atlantic and amongst different European nations rather more in favor of the hyperlink with Washington.
In The Hague, Macron defended a European-wide inexperienced industrial coverage to cut back dependence on fossil fuels. "Our pursuits should be protected", he mentioned, including: "If we contemplate that they could be compromised, then we should act". In line with Macron, it's essential to "filter investments to sure important sectors" and the place there could also be vulnerabilities or the place European safety is in danger.
It had been 23 years since a French president had made a state journey to the Netherlands. It's the return of the go to made by King William and Queen Máxima in 2016. Yesterday there was a gala dinner in Amsterdam. At the moment the day is devoted to political conferences, with Prime Minister Mark Rutte and between the respective governments, and to technological cooperation between each nations. The sovereigns of the Netherlands will this Wednesday accompany Macron and his spouse, Brigitte, to see an exhibition in regards to the painter Johannes Vermeer on the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Dutch cultural occasion of this spring.
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