Relations between Europe and the US are currently in crisis, but French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the White House this Monday was seen as an achievement in keeping things together. He used a approach of praising the US president and gently persuading him, which is seen as more productive than openly criticizing Trump. Macron managed to navigate a potentially difficult situation without giving in or revealing too much. He spoke of both countries wanting peace, and while correcting one of Trump’s claims on Europe’s support for Ukraine, agreed that Europe needs to take more responsibility for its own security. However, Macron did concede that Trump was right to re-establish some kind of relationship with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, which is in contrast to the views of London, Paris, and Berlin who have been pursuing a policy of isolating Putin. Macron offered the idea of European countries like France and the UK playing a leading role in ensuring the security of a post-truce Ukraine, but also stressed the importance of having an American backstop. However, he did not get a commitment of US back-up from his meeting in the Oval Office and did not hear any criticism of the Russian president from Trump. While the ambitions for re-establishing a close relationship between Europe and the US are not on anyone’s roadmap, Macron has been working on the idea of a more strategically autonomous Europe. Friedrich Merz, who will be Germany’s next chancellor, shares Macron’s view. Merz has already said that Europe needs to be independent of the US in terms of security and that Germany needs to strengthen Europe as quickly as possible. However, not all European powers share the same view on Ukraine, with the rise of far-right nationalist parties in Europe suggesting many citizens are skeptical of the continent’s continued support for Kyiv. This could be an issue when UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer visits Washington later this week to reinforce their case on Ukraine. However, the problem is that Washington in the shape of Donald Trump is currently on transmit mode and leaves little room for the opinion of others. While America has always had the ability to flex its muscles and get its way, Europe has not been on the receiving end. This shift is a sign of just how serious this rupture in established alliances has become.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg592557vgo