Tag: Angela Merkel

Macron Willing to Trade France’s UN Security Council Seat to Brussels in Exchange for an EU Army

Kurt Zindulka – September 23, 2021

President Emmanuel Macron is willing to trade control of France’s permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council to Brussels in exchange for European Union member states backing his plan to forge an EU Army, an ally of the French leader has said.

Macron, who at the start of his presidency declared that he wished to govern like the Roman God Jupiter, is set to become the European Union’s most influential leader with Chancellor Angela Merkel set to step down after Sunday’s elections in Germany.

Part of this Jupitarian strategy will be to push for the creation of a centrally controlled European Army with France at the helm in the wake of President Biden’s bungled withdrawal from Afghanistan and the AUKUS defence pact signed between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

In order to accomplish the lofty goal of a centralized European military force, Mr Macron is reportedly willing to cede control of France’s permanent position on the UN Security Council.

A close Macron ally, Sandro Gozi told The Telegraph: “I think that if we move on these things we can put on the table also the discussion on the Security Council.”

The former Italian Europe minister and current transnational MEP for Macron’s party in Brussels added: “We must be prepared to confirm our transatlantic alliance but also to become adult in terms of our security and take on our responsibility… Certainly, Macron will push a lot. I would say this is probably his highest priority now.”

France is currently the only EU member state to have a permanent seat on the UN Security Council after the UK left the bloc at the beginning of this year. While Brussels does not have a seat on the influential body, it sits in “observer” status.

The indication of a potential trade of the UN seat for a France-led EU Army comes as the French are set to take control of the rotating EU presidency on January 1st. President Macron is set to lead a joint summit on European defence alongside the EU Council president and close Macron ally Charles Michel during the six-month period in which France controls the presidency.

“This is a unique opportunity for him and for Europe,” said Mr Gozi.

https://www.breitbart.com

German Military Spending Up by Double Digits as World Total Hits Highest Level Since Cold War

Sputnik News – April 27, 2020

The Trump administration has repeatedly pressured Berlin to ramp up its military spending, threatening to pull troops out of the country and station them in Poland if the country doesn’t meet NATO’s 2 percent of GDP spending guidelines.

German defence spending jumped upward by a whopping 10 percent between 2018 and 2019, with the country’s military budget rising faster than that of any other major power, new figures by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) suggest.

According to the think tank’s figures, Berlin’s defence commitments, which reached the equivalent of $49.3 billion in 2019, grew faster than any of the world’s top 15 countries by total military expenditures.

The spending increase comes amid US President Donald Trump’s repeated berating of Germany and other European NATO members over their failure to meet the 2 percent of GDP military spending goal set at the alliance’s 2014 summit in Wales. Washington has repeatedly singled out German Chancellor Angela Merkel for her failure to increase defence commitments, even though Germany is one of 19 alliance members that failed to meet the spending requirements.

Germany has already committed some €45 billion (about $50 billion) on defence in 2020, increasing spending from 1.23 percent of GDP on defence in 2018 to 1.38 percent this year. Merkel also promised to increase Berlin’s defence outlays to 1.5 percent of GDP by 2023, and to 2 percent by 2031.

https://sputniknews.com