Truss’s ‘sure’ boosts Macron’s new European discussion board initiative By Reuters

By Michel Rose and John Irish

PARIS (Reuters) – UK Prime Minister Liz Truss’s determination to affix the inaugural summit of a pan-European grouping this week has given a lift to the initiative, a brainchild of French President Emmanuel Macron that some have written off already as simply one other speaking store.

The summit in Prague of the European Political Neighborhood (EPC) will deliver collectively the 27 leaders of the European Union with 17 leaders from the continent at the moment outdoors the membership, together with Britain, Turkey, Norway and Ukraine.

Truss’s determination to attend Thursday’s assembly provides Britain a chance to form a brand new European discussion board from the within after Brexit, and it may shift the highlight away from monetary and political turmoil at house.

“The British took a really pragmatic tactic: in case you can’t ‘kill’ the unusual initiative, it’s higher to interact deeply and to direct it in your individual manner,” a European diplomat advised Reuters.

Diplomats say the EPC’s objective is way from clear, and plenty of doubt that, with so many across the desk – foes in addition to associates – it should final, although it should handle points that preoccupy all of them: power, safety and immigration.

A key goal for Macron is to embrace EU candidate international locations which are dropping persistence ready for membership of the bloc, and in doing so counter makes an attempt by Russia and China to realize affect within the continent’s southern and japanese fringes.

“One of many factors is to have the ability to inform Kosovo and Albania we are able to do issues with them, and so they do not need to rely solely on Russia and China for funding,” a French official mentioned.

Macron worries that the lengthy street to assembly EU membership standards may discourage Western Balkans nations, boosting populists and euroscepticism.

The French additionally suppose it is very important have a discussion board to debate safety with Britain, Europe’s different huge navy energy, or power with Norway, which is at the moment serving to Europe wean itself off Russian gasoline.

“BLAH BLAH”

Nevertheless, Macron’s lofty beliefs a couple of completely satisfied “European household” usually are not extensively shared.

His proposal was initially seen with suspicion by japanese European international locations, and Ukraine specifically, who suspected it was a ploy by France, lengthy reluctant to confess extra international locations into the EU, to maintain them in a type of “purgatory”.

French officers deny that is the case and have gone out of their option to reassure them.

“Firstly we have been afraid the EPC could be a substitute for EU membership, however because it develops now, I do not suppose so,” an japanese European diplomat mentioned.

Expectations stay low, nevertheless.

“It is going to be simply one other ‘blah blah’ discussion board to debate … however after a number of conferences it’d end with none huge success,” the japanese European diplomat added.

“There are too many international locations with too many pursuits … How do you’ve gotten Serbia and speak about Russia? How do you’ve gotten Turkey and Greece/Cyprus collectively? How one can have Armenia and Azerbaijan on the similar desk?”

France is conscious that, and not using a clear agenda, many really feel the summit will quantity to little greater than an enormous household picture of leaders at Prague Citadel.

Nonetheless it was happy that Ukraine has provide you with proposals on what the EPC ought to appear to be, in addition to Moldova, which has provided to host the second summit of the grouping.

One other French diplomat mentioned some concrete initiatives may emerge from the discussion board, together with college cooperation following Britain’s exit from the Erasmus change programme, and even free telephone roaming costs throughout member international locations.

European diplomats suppose the initiative additionally has the benefit of bringing Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan nearer to Europe and away from Russia.

The Turks, initially miffed by French hesitancy, finally acquired an invite and can attend, however warned the EU shouldn’t consider Ankara will surrender its hopes to affix the membership at some point. It opened membership negotiations with the EU 23 years in the past.

Forward of the Prague summit, some European diplomats recalled one other French initiative, launched with fanfare over a decade in the past by then-President Nicolas Sarkozy, that fell into oblivion.

“Just like the Mediterranean Union, it’s going to be a giant French undertaking with out huge success and actual impression,” one Baltic diplomat mentioned.