Emmanuel Macron has done Europe a favour, reckons Germany's opposition leader - The Economist
Emmanuel Macron has done Europe a favour, reckons Germany’s opposition leader
By Invitation| The future of Europe
But Friedrich Merz insists that the continent has “no time to die”
SEVEN YEARS after his pivotal “Speech on Europe” at the Sorbonne, President Emmanuel Macron of France recently returned to the university to make another resonating address on the topic, expanding on some of the points in a subsequent interview with The Economist. His dramatic warning that “Europe could die” provides an opportunity to reflect on the challenges that face the continent, and the progress it has made since President Macron’s first speech.
The geopolitical landscape has shifted dramatically over those seven years. Britain’s exit from the European Union, the covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s war against Ukraine have fundamentally altered the political reality for Europe. Perhaps most importantly, an axis of autocracies now threatens the rules-based international order, attempting to push back against democracy and freedom worldwide. The global power competition between America and China threatens to divide the world once again into two geopolitical hemispheres.
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