France's Macron urges European sovereignty ahead of G7, NATO summits

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a press conference with Secretary-General of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg (not in the picture) at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 21, 2021. (Photo by Aurelien Morissard/Xinhua)

On the NATO summit next week in Brussels, French President Emmanuel Macron, who said in 2019 that the trans-Atlantic alliance was experiencing "brain death", stressed that "the strategic capability autonomy of Europeans should be recognized."

PARIS, June 10 (Xinhua) -- The European Union needs to build the framework of its strategic autonomy on economic, industrial and technological issues as well as military values, said French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday.

"For me at the heart of these days to come is the European sovereignty," Macron told a press conference at Elysee on the eve of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in the United Kingdom from June 11 to 13.

Citing "a solid record" by Europe in this regard in recent years, including progress in defense, digital governance and post-pandemic recovery plan, Macron called for a new partnership with the United States.

On the NATO summit next week in Brussels, Macron, who said in 2019 that the trans-Atlantic alliance was experiencing "brain death", stressed that "the strategic capability autonomy of Europeans should be recognized."

Macron said that "NATO must clarify its common values. NATO must build a rule of conduct among allies and NATO must clarify its concept."

"What seems to me to be very important in this context is that we, as Europeans, assume that we are the players in arms control on our soil. This is an essential subject for the months and years to come," he said.

"Europe is not simply an object or a territory of the distribution of influences. We are a subject of international geopolitics and we must assume it," he added.

Flags of the European Union fly outside the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, May 21, 2021. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)