Merkel backs Macron’s reform plans at EU dinner

Tallinn: German Chancellor Angela Merkel hailed French President Emmanuel Macron’s new vision for Europe as EU leaders held a frank debate on reforming the bloc.

The leaders met in the Estonian capital Tallinn two days after Macron used a major speech to call on his counterparts to recommit themselves to a European project hurt by Brexit, the rise of populism and the migrant crisis.

Merkel, a European veteran who emerged with a weakened mandate from German elections at the weekend, said before meeting the 39-year-old Macron that EU leaders should move quickly on reform based on his plans.

“There is a wide agreement between France and Germany when it comes to the proposals, although we must work on the details,” Merkel said.

With media in Tallinn kept at bay on Thursday night, the European leaders were given a rare opportunity for a “frank and informal” discussion, without any agenda, according to EU President Donald Tusk.

The young French president introduced his ideas at the threehour dinner at the Kadriorg Palace in Tallinn, a former summer palace for the Russian Tsars that is now a national museum.

The leaders discussed the ideas – over courses of flank steak, salmon and rabbit liver – “in a very constructive and positive atmosphere”, an EU source said.

Based on the discussion, Tusk, who coordinates EU summit meet- ings, “will consult with his colleagues in the coming two weeks and propose how to take the work forward”, the EU source added.

British Prime Minister Theresa May was also present for the summit, and was set to meet Merkel for a bilateral discussion as well as a visit to a Nato military base with Macron. Brexit negotiations, however, were not on the official menu.

The dinner discussion on the EU’s future will be followed with talks on digital issues, a priority for tiny Estonia, which holds the bloc’s six- month rotating presidency.

Macron’s proposals for a post-Brexit shake-up of Europe include a finance minister, budget and parliament for the 19-member eurozone, as well as an EU-wide “rapid reaction force” to work with national armies.

Also at the dinner was European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, who set out his own vision for a more deeply integrated European project in his annual State of the Union speech earlier this month. — AFP