France, marginalised in world affairs
April,
🇫🇷 conducts airlift + reassurance missions with 🇩🇰 in extreme conditions in Greenland
🇫🇷 Rafales intercept Russian fighter jets in NATO Baltic air policing
Rafales deployed from 🇫🇷 base in UAE defend Gulf allies from Iranian drones
The EU was created in order to make sovereignty obsolete. This is one of the key reasons why it is unlikely ever to deliver on its many promises to Ukraine. It cannot act as a sovereign actor. Only nations of Europe can save Ukraine and Europe.
EU leaders are scapegoating @vonderleyen for their own shortcomings ahead of #SOTEU
True: von der Leyen embodies EU weaknesses, yet those aren’t of her making.
Alone she can’t retaliate against the US, act decisively on Gaza, or broker Ukraine talks
My reaction to a great piece @VMalingre
https://t.co/zELHqwd0Ha #euco
Ce deal Europe - USA est en réalité un contrat léonin : l’Europe s’est couchée devant la démonstration de force brute de Trump et en sortira affaiblie aussi bien politiquement qu’économiquement. Alors qu’elle avait des arguments et des moyens d’imposer un accord plus équilibré.
Quite skeptical about this unifying effect.
There is a precipice between a call for action & actual action.
I am unsure the EU will act in unison, but rather that each nation will build up its defense & nurture alliances careless that it’s a zero sum game for the EU as a whole.
As a reminder: Macron-alone has been saying this for close to a decade now
Europe has been in mortal danger for a while, we’ve just stuck our heads in the sand & ignoring reality
Europe now has its back against the wall and needs to give itself the tools to fight & survive
Once again I am leaving the Munich Security Conference in a low mood. Amongst all the noise, the US signalled their plans for Europe, so things are becoming clearer. But things are clearly not good.
This is what we now know, and what we now have to do about it:🧵1/17
@CNBC And more: "To my European friends, I would say: get into the debate, not by complaining that you might, yes or no, be at the table, but by coming up with concrete proposals, ideas, ramp up [defence] spending."
https://t.co/MEEnlLUrlX
JD Vance's speech at MSC likely signals that Trump will bring EU regulation on digital/US tech into play, as in: you want a seat at the table in Ukraine negotiations, US security protection & no tariff war, then relax your regulations on our social media & tech platforms