Emmanuel Macron has always been very loyal to Europe. On the evening of his election to the French presidency, May 7, 2017, he crossed the courtyard of the Louvre to join his supporters to the sound of the European anthem. Today, he chairs the European Union (EU) and is the interlocutor of Vladimir Putin and the greats of this world during discussions on the war in Ukraine, European security or conflicts in Africa.

The most pro-European French president in a long time took a risk by displaying his positions so ostensibly in favor of Europe at a time when it seemed to be losing ground. When he came to power five years ago, the UK was heading for a hard Brexit, Poland and Hungary were openly defying EU human rights rules, and Eurosceptic parties were gaining traction. land in France and on the Old Continent.

Yet the president persisted. For him, Europe without France would be an insignificant and disunited entity, and France without Europe, a diminished power in the face of the United States, China and Russia. Contrary to what one might have thought, his pro-European position did not affect his popularity with the electorate. His European policy has instead become a weapon of domestic politics, as he is about to win his bet to get a second term as head of France.

Before the outbreak of war between Russia and Ukraine on February 24, the polls credited him with 23% to 24% of the votes in the first round on April 10, far ahead of Marine Le Pen, of the National Rally, which fluctuated between 15% and 17%. The outbreak of war in Europe and his commitment to peace boosted his electoral potential by up to 30%. In the second round, on April 24, the polls give him the winner against any of the candidates who will face him.

“At the start of his mandate, the president had to face the skepticism of his peers who saw in French ambitions a way of dominating the continent,” says Nicole Gnesotto, vice-president of the Jacques Delors Institute, a think tank founded by the former President of the European Commission of the same name. “His speeches were well received, but nothing more. Then, events put him back at the center of the game.

Europeans are more and more seduced by the leadership of the French president with regard to European issues. In January and February, so before the war, the European Council on Foreign Relations commissioned a large survey of 15,000 people in 12 EU member states. The questions focused on the attitude of Europeans towards the management of global challenges. The results confirm President Macron in his pro-European choices. Europeans, the survey report says, “have understood that there is a sense in collectively addressing the policy challenges that matter most to them — and they are broadly comfortable with the idea that the French are leading these cooperative efforts”.

Macron defends an ambitious project for Europe. He invites the continent to change in order to become, as he says in his speeches, “a more independent, more sovereign power”, able to protect its inhabitants from the difficulties of life and to protect themselves against the brutality of international relations. .

The pandemic and the war in Ukraine have deeply shaken EU member states and caused 180 degree reversals. Presented in Paris in 2020, the recovery plan intended to help the countries most affected by COVID-19 has been adopted by all members, even those most attached to fiscal rigour, such as Germany and Scandinavian and Baltic countries. An envelope of 750 billion euros is being spent.

By adopting this plan, the Europeans “agreed to go into debt together, [ce qui marque] a historic turning point in the governance of the European economy,” writes Jean-Dominique Giuliani, President of the Robert Schuman Foundation, in an op-ed published by Le Figaro.

The war in Ukraine has re-established the central idea of ​​Macron’s project, which consists in giving Europe strategic autonomy in many areas. The continent’s dependence on China for masks, certain medicines and other products has shocked public opinion and forced “governments to adopt real industrial policies in areas that concern supply, space, aeronautics, microchips, batteries,” writes Giuliani.

It also allowed Macron to talk again about the construction of a Europe of defense and security. France has always argued in favor of military autonomy from the United States, either within NATO or outside. But there were many obstacles to this project. The United Kingdom rejected it, Germany spoke about it from time to time without believing it too much, and the countries of Eastern Europe feared it like the plague, considering the American security guarantee stronger than any European security architecture.

With Brexit, France became the only nuclear power in the EU and the only one to hold a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. This allows him to advance projects concerning operations in Africa or the Persian Gulf.

The war in Ukraine came as a shock and finally convinced Europeans to act. For the first time, the EU is financing arms purchases for a non-member country to defend itself. Assuming from 1^er January the presidency of the EU, Macron has become Russia’s privileged interlocutor on the Ukrainian question. And he plays the consulting game. Before and after each telephone conversation with the Russian president, he is careful to consult with his American and European partners and discuss the next steps.

Macron is on the right track, says Nicole Gnesotto, author of the recent Europe: change or perish. “Unlike its partners, France has ideas, it makes proposals, takes initiatives,” she said. Personally, I believe in a Europe seen as a political power, but it is still a French concept, well articulated by President Macron. The Europeans remain hesitant about it, but they will come to it. Macron re-elected, he will have five years to convince public opinion of the merits of his vision of an autonomous Europe. »

If Europe has been successful for him, Macron has had difficult times in his relations with the rest of the world. French-speaking Africa, France’s favorite land, gave it a hard time. Mali has ordered the expulsion of its military forces who came to fight against jihadism, and coups in Guinea and Burkina Faso have undermined the promotion of democracy so dear to French diplomacy. In Lebanon, Macron the voluntarist hit a wall when he wanted to get involved in the political crisis that has shaken the country for years.

Finally, he was humiliated when the United States signed a military alliance with Australia that resulted in the cancellation of a huge contract for the purchase of French nuclear-powered submarines by Canberra.