23 January 2019

Politico: Mercron’s sound and fury

Echoing that sentiment, Marine Le Pen warned Monday that the deal opens the door to forcing people in the border regions to speak German at school. It is only a matter of time before France would have to share its permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council with Germany, the leader of France’s National Rally predicted.[...]

While the agreement aspires to promote greater cooperation, interaction and exchange along the border, it’s ludicrous to suggest it’s a back door to recreating the German Reich. The declarations in the treaty are formulated in such broad terms that they’re essentially meaningless.[...]

The Treaty of Aachen's greatest contribution might be to put in black and white just how little Macron has won from Berlin on Europe. Following his upstart campaign for president and his fiery Sorbonne speech on Europe in 2017, many hoped Europe’s moment had finally arrived. [...]

Though both Macron and Merkel have been criticized for the lack of ambition in the Treaty of Aachen, most of the blame lies with Berlin. On all the monumental questions of European integration in recent years, whether the eurozone or the military, the German answer has been the same: Nein.

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