Paris vs Berlin Part 1

The favorite in the presidential race in France Emmanuel macron said in an interview, that the EU needs to be reformed, otherwise it is waiting for “fixit”. “I am Pro-European politician, during the election, I constantly defended the European idea and European politics as I believe that it is extremely important to the French that our country is in the process of globalization,” macron said in an interview.

“But at the same time, we must consider the situation, listen to the people, that they are extremely angry today and don’t want to wait. Further imbalance in the work of the EU is unacceptable, he stressed. – Therefore, I believe that my mandate extends to a deep reform of the European Union, our European project.”

With the need for EU reform in Europe agree, perhaps, everything, especially after the referendum in the UK last year, and clearly demonstrated the degree of confidence of the British people towards the European institutions.

With the launch of the 50th article of the Treaty of Lisbon United Kingdom effectively withdrew from the reform process of the European Union, and the responsibility for his fate now lies primarily in the two major economies of the continent – France and Germany. But as the same vision of reform of the EU in Paris and Berlin?

Explorer: a Question, I think, rhetorical, as it’s unclear who will be President of France. Let us carefully to political and civil pluralism in France. Germany has already burned, taking françois Fillon, leader of the neighboring state, and having made insulting remarks against the Emmanuel Macron. But suppose macron. It is, of course, will remember the wrongs done to him by Angela Merkel. But he realizes that without France, Germany would be unable to persuade other countries and Brussels of the need for appropriate reforms.

What is the reform? In the Bratislava agreement of September last year, has already indicated certain vector, where was laid the denominator of multi-speed development of the European Union, which were announced this year: – with the leading countries and accompanying a group of other States, primarily the Visegrad group led by Poland.

It is clear that it will be about how to implement the principle of subsidiarity, that is, that realistically (and painlessly) it is necessary to leave Brussels, and that it is necessary to give the level of the countries and their respective regions of the lands, provinces, etc.

Emmanuel Macron with Angela Merkel

I think that after the election of the French President these discussions will be filled with specific content. Although the German Advisory Council last fall released its proposals about what can be done to ensure that the mills get more leverage at the national level and more effectively implementing its reforms in the context of existing arrangements – no cancels Maastricht, Copenhagen or Lisbon agreement.

But all these mechanisms just require a sufficiently creative, flexible and constructive use of the tools that today there is, so it’s not so much reform, how much, if you want fine-tuning, fine tuning. The formula is quite simple: to leave Brussels that really needs to be on this level, to hit the hands of the bureaucrats, so they don’t interfere in those sensitive areas that hurt the national feelings and national mechanisms and allow enough flexibility to respond to external and internal challenges.

This fall, when it will be elected to the French Parliament, and formed German coalition government (my prediction – this will be with high probability a government of the CDU-CSU, free Democrats and the green party, and Frau Merkel will retain her post), we will predict who Angela Merkel is planning to build this tandem. The relations of France and Germany will determine the mood in all 28 countries of the European Union – I deliberately keep Britain in the EU, not the fact that in two years she will be able to leave the Union.