Donald Trump won the American election by defeating Kamala Harris and will return to the White House. A prospect for which Emmanuel Macron has prepared himself. The two men know each other well, how does this duo’s return to the international scene look like?
The message of congratulations to Donald Trump that Emmanuel Macron hastened to publish on X sets the tone for their reunion. The French president writes: “ Congratulations President Donald Trump. Ready to work together as we have been able to do for four years. With your beliefs and with mine “. On the international scene, Emmanuel Macron is one of the leaders who have already worked alongside Donald Trump during his first term, so he knows what to expect. An advantage that the French president wants to make profitable. He called Donald Trump very quickly after the announcement of his victory and those around him described their conversation as “ warm ”, marked with “ the history of their relationship and their proximity “.
Instructions for working with Donald Trump
Emmanuel Macron So I think I know the instructions for working with Donald Trump. The idea is to approach your return with the pragmatism of experience, without giving in to “ fantasy » about his personality and to a “ appearance of irrationality » as underlined by a diplomatic source who explains that with Donald Trump “ you never know how it’s going to end, so you’re always on guard “. To this permanent state of alert, we must add an ability to understand the negotiations with the state of mind of the new American president who “ looks at all topics transactionally “. In other words, being able to make “deals”, agreements and engage in a balance of power in virility.
In this balance of power, does Emmanuel Macron have the weapons to resist Donald Trump? That’s the whole question because on the one hand Donald Trump is coming back in force after an electoral feat, on the other Emmanuel Macron has been weakened since the dissolution and is looking for how to revive himself. The proximity of the two presidents cannot be enough to rebalance such an unequal game, especially since this strategy based on personal ties already used by Emmanuel Macron had shown its limits during their respective first mandates.
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“If we decide to remain herbivores, the carnivores will win »
To weigh, you have to have weight. Emmanuel Macron knows this and wants to obtain it by mobilizing Europe behind him to resist the Trump bulldozer. He said it graphically to his European partners gathered in Budapest this week: “ The world is made up of carnivores and herbivores. If we decide to remain herbivores, the carnivores will win “. In this diagram, Donald Trump is a carnivore. Emmanuel Macron’s objective is not to let himself be eaten away.
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