Europe can’t rely on US anymore: Merkel
BERLIN/AACHEN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Europe can no longer count on the US for military protection and must “take its destiny into its own hands”.
Merkel’s comments on Thursday reprise a theme she first sounded last year in response to US President Donald Trump’s “America First” foreign policy and his hectoring of Nato allies for allegedly spending too little on defence. It’s her latest retort to Trump, who this week withdrew the US from the nuclear accord with Iran that European powers say they will uphold.
“It’s no longer the case that the United States will simply just protect us,” Merkel said in a speech honouring French President Emmanuel Macron at a prize ceremony in Aachen, Germany. “Rather, Europe needs to take its fate into its own hands. That’s the task for the future.”
Many major global conflicts are happening “at Europe’s doorstep,” said Merkel, who expressed concern about the risk of war between Israel and Iran over Syria. While European Union countries have made progress on defence cooperation, the effort remains “in its infancy,” she said.
MACRON BACKS EUROPEAN UNITY
Macron called on Europe to unite and exert a self-confident “European sovereignty” in the face of an increasingly complex world and unilateral US moves on issues such as climate change and the Iran nuclear deal.
He urged Europe to defend the global multilateral order for the sake of the continent’s sovereignty.
He said “we made the choice to build peace and stability in the Middle East,” an apparent reference to the Iran deal.AGENCIES