PARIS (Reuters) – The European Union (EU) was not dreaded enough in its commercial negotiations with the United States, said President Emmanuel Macron during the Council of Ministers held on Wednesday.
“Europe is not yet seen enough as a power (…) to be free, you have to be feared. We have not been feared enough,” said the head of state according to words reported by French officials.
Brussels and Washington concluded a trade agreement on Sunday, establishing customs duties of 15% on most of the products of the 27 EU member states.
This agreement was deemed “unbalanced” by the government, Prime Minister François Bayrou having even mentioned a “submission”.
“Negotiations were carried out in difficult conditions,” Emmanuel Macron’s Council of Ministers had not reacted to the trade agreement at the Council of Ministers.
“The agreement has the merit of providing visibility and short -term predictability. It preserves French and European interests,” continued the president.
“This is not the end of the story and we will not stay there. This is a first step in a negotiation process that will continue,” he added.
(Report Michel Rose, written by Blandine Hénault, edited by Kate Entringer)
