Amid Europe’s growing rift with President Donald Trump, a French lawmaker this weekend called on the United States to “give us back the Statue of Liberty” now that Americans “have chosen to side with the tyrants.”
But French President Emmanuel Macron came out with a more concrete plan to split with Washington. In interviews published Saturday in several French newspapers, Macron said he intends “to go and convince European states that have become accustomed to buying American” to purchase European missile systems and fighter jets instead.
"Those who buy Patriot should be offered the new-generation Franco-Italian SAMP/T. Those who buy the F-35, should be offered the Rafale,” he told Le Parisien. “That's the way to increase the rate of production.”
While Belgium and the Netherlands still plan to buy new F-35s, Portugal is wavering on replacing its F-16s with the next generation of Lockheed Martin fighter jets, suggesting last week that it may look for European alternatives.
Not just Europe. Canada’s new Prime Minister Mark Carney last week ordered his government to review its deal to buy as many as 88 American F-35s. So far, Ottawa has budgeted to buy only the first 16 planes.
Potential winners? Macron said he asked European defense contractors to find ways to reduce costs. But Turkey could prove a major winner of any European decoupling from the US. This month, the leading Turkish drone manufacturer formed a joint venture with one of Italy’s biggest weapons manufacturers. Leaders in European capitals and Ankara are now calling for closer defense ties.
