this post was submitted on 10 Feb 2026
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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.

"In another era we might have said it is the moment to 'assume our majority'," he said ahead of an EU summit in Brussels later this week.

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[–] lmmarsano@lemmynsfw.com 0 points 19 hours ago (5 children)

I'd for the longest time wondered why Europe has been so complacent in letting the US dominate the geopolitical agenda. Could it be by letting the US overspend on military, EU can instead invest in better living standards for themselves & mooch off US military support through NATO if the need ever arises?

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[–] SabinStargem@lemmy.today -1 points 19 hours ago

World powers don't let shadow fleets sabotage their infrastructure without receiving a declaration of war in return.

[–] Akasazh@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I really like Macron in his foreign policy mode, it just a shame he pissed the bed by opening a loophole that will be abused if ever an amoral president gets in power.

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[–] Zorque@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

It's less about being a power. The British Empire was "A Power". The US is "A Power". Russia has been "A Power" and wants people to think it still is. China is "A Power".

Unless you use it to the benefit of the people, it's just posturing.

[–] Paranoidfactoid@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I lived in Strasbourg during the 2018 Christmas terrorist attack. French gendarmerie kicked ass. Europe needs a standing army. Go build one.

[–] mcv@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 day ago

More than a standing army, it needs to act united and decisively. More power for the Euro parliament and leadership that can take charge of crisis situations without having to negotiate with every single member state.

[–] ExLisper@lemmy.curiana.net 1 points 1 day ago

EU leaders are waking up slowly. When they finally wake up and start acting Ukraine will be part of Russia and Greenland part of US.

[–] comrade_twisty@feddit.org 1 points 1 day ago (7 children)

Can we put him in VdL’s place once he is done in France? He would make a great President of Europe.

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[–] Cruxifux@feddit.nl -2 points 1 day ago (6 children)

Why is China always perceived as a threat?

[–] JoMiran@lemmy.ml 7 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Not all threats are military. China is the economic threat but it also has military might.

EDIT: From the article.

"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.

[–] Damage@feddit.it -2 points 20 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago)

Because it's an authoritarian state, and history teaches us how those end up behaving, sooner or later.

[–] HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

China may not be perceived as a military threat, but it is credibly an economic threat. China is returning to a state where Europe has difficulty conducting trade with China as China will only accept natural resources for trade. That can be dangerous for an economy with a large safety net, declining productivity, and little in terms of natural resources.

[–] ayyy@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago

Because they like imperialism. All the imperialistic superpowers are a threat to humanity.

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[–] bearboiblake@pawb.social -4 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Translation: "We should increase spending on military equipment so that later we can become fascist and hand it all off to an authoritarian regime to use. We should do this instead of fixing any actual problems, because addressing the root cause of those problems would mean acknowledging that those problems are caused by the ruling class, who own and control 'democracy'."

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