About Emmanuel Macron
During a visit to Greece in late September 2024, Emmanuel Macron participated in a policy debate alongside Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, where he argued that Europe must significantly increase its investment budget to remain competitive with the United States and China. Macron stated that "Europe invests less and at slower rates than China and America" and said that France and Greece would advocate for an ambitious European budget for public and private investments. He also described Chinese industrial policy as creating "overcapacities" and "over subsidizing a lot of sectors," adding that it is "literally killing a large part of the European industry." Macron called for a "de-risking strategy" rather than decoupling from China, and argued that European regulation often burdens European companies while favoring non-European players.
In subsequent remarks, Macron warned that the United States, Russia, and China are "dead against the Europeans," calling it a "unique moment" for Europe to "wake up." He said that European defense is "no longer a theoretical discussion for the future" but an "immediate geopolitical necessity," citing the war in Ukraine as an example of European unity and capacity to act. Macron also argued that Europe has the potential to be a major global player, stating that "this very moment could be the European moment" and that Europe represents a "huge defense power" and a "very relevant trade player."
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Emmanuel Macron's recent appearances.
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✨ AI-enhanced transcript with speaker attribution
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Emmanuel Macron0:09
To learn more about what has already been done. The United States of America and Israel have decided to strike Iran in recent hours. France was neither notified nor involved, as were all the countries in the region and our allies. Iran has retaliated in many countries, many friendly countries where we have military installations and nationals, with consequences for regional stability. Peace in the region and beyond. The absolute priority for us is obviously the security of our nationals in all the countries that are currently being struck. Next is the security of our military and diplomatic installations in all these countries that would be exposed. And obviously also security on the national territory. We will have the opportunity to come back to this.
Secondly, it is to stand alongside all the countries that are currently affected by the Iranian retaliation or threatened by it in their territorial integrity and sovereignty. I have spoken to all of these countries in recent hours by phone, and I will report back to you. And the Minister of Foreign Affairs will likely do so as well. Finally, I hope that we can take all useful initiatives so that diplomatic work can resume its rightful place. We have already called for an exceptional meeting of the United Nations Security Council. We must multiply initiatives so that issues are resolved through diplomacy, because no one can think that the question of the Iranian nuclear program, ballistic activity, and regional destabilization will be resolved simply by strikes. And obviously also the legitimate rights of the Iranian people to make themselves heard, which they have expressed in recent months while being terribly repressed, to be able to decide their own destiny, and that is also something we must do everything to defend. So it is in this context that I wanted to hold this defense council, and we will come back to each of these points. Thank you.
