French President Emmanuel Macron has urged Europe to assert itself on the world stage, saying it is time to start acting like a power.
In the face of growing threats from China, Russia, and now the US, he told a group of European newspapers that the continent faced a wake-up call.
Are we ready to become a power? This is the question in the field of economy and finance, in defence and security, and in our democratic systems, he stated ahead of an EU summit in Brussels later this week.
Macron repeated his call for EU-wide mutualised loans to raise hundreds of billions of euros necessary for industrial investment.
The time has come to launch a shared debt capacity to fund our future expense - eurobonds for the future. We need big European programmes to finance the best projects, he emphasized.
However, similar calls have met with skepticism from countries like Germany, which are concerned about fiscal responsibility and the burden-sharing that could result from such initiatives.
Macron acknowledged the notion that France has not maintained a balanced economic model compared to the northern economies that might be seen as more responsible.
He noted the increased demand in global financial markets for a mutualised European debt system, which he believes the EU should be equipped to supply.
According to Macron, the EU needs around €1.2 trillion annually to invest in security, clean energy, and artificial intelligence sectors. He called for Europe to protect its vital industries, stating, The Chinese do it, the Americans too. Europe today is the most open market in the world.
Macron concluded with a call to action, highlighting Europe's strengths and the necessity for unity in the face of global challenges, asserting, Today Europe faces a massive challenge, in a world of disorder.
