- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

Transatlantic Link Breaking Down: Ex-French PM Urges Europe to Rethink Alliances

© REUTERS / Kevin LamarqueFrench President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. President Donald Trump attend a welcoming ceremony at the Invalides in Paris, France, July 13, 2017.
French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. President Donald Trump attend a welcoming ceremony at the Invalides in Paris, France, July 13, 2017. - Sputnik International
Subscribe
Former Prime Minister of France Jean-Pierre Raffarin believes that the security and stability of the Eurasian continent should be guaranteed by a group of four countries: France, Germany, Russia and China.

Europe "is experiencing an internal process of disintegration following Brexit, and facing increasing instability in the outside world," Raffarin said in an interview with Le Journal du Dimanche.

"The transatlantic link is breaking down. This should prompt us to review our geostrategic alliances, in the interests of our own security and peace," he noted, emphasizing that President Trump's policy was calling the US-European alliance into question.

"We face aggression against the Eurozone, an onslaught by the dollar; our companies are being forced to close their factories in Iran due to American pressure," the former prime minister complained.

Ultimately, Raffarin believes that "Europe's future is tied to the creation of a strong European pole in a stable Eurasia…This arc of stability should be based on a group of four countries comprising France, Germany, Russia and China," he said.

French President Emmanuel Macron arrives to take part in an emergency European Union leaders summit on immigration, in Brussels, Belgium June 24, 2018 - Sputnik International
Macron Says EU Faces Migration Crisis as Merkel Gives Up on Finding Solution
Jean-Pierre Raffarin served as France's prime minister between 2002 and 2005, resigning after France's rejection of a treaty establishing a constitution for Europe. It was during Raffarin's tenure that France refused to support the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.

Europe's relationship with Washington has taken a turn for the worse in recent months after President Trump introduced steel and aluminum tariffs on EU producers and threatened to slap a 20% tariff on European cars unless the bloc removes trade barriers on "great [US] companies and workers." The EU vowed to retaliate. Last week, an EU official recalled the tension-filled atmosphere of the recent G7 summit in Quebec, where President Trump allegedly 'joked' with President Emmanuel Macron about "all the terrorists" living "in Paris."

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала