Post #5003

📰 Fico and Macron: Paris Talks on Nukes, Arms and EU Power French President Emmanuel Macron hosted Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico at the Élysée Palace this week for a nearly two-hour meeting focused on nuclear energy, defense, and the EU's place in the world. The talks centered on three key areas. First, nuclear energy: Fico emphasized Slovakia's deep nuclear cooperation with France and announced plans to meet EDF and Framatome executives ahead of the Paris nuclear summit in March. Second, defense: they explored ways to leverage France's advanced arms industry alongside Slovakia's growing defense sector, in line with Macron's vision of a "stronger, more independent, more sovereign" EU. Third, energy costs: Fico pushed Macron to back Slovak-led proposals to lower electricity bills at February's informal European Council meeting. They also discussed EU enlargement, especially to the Western Balkans. According to Fico, the EU treats Serbia unfairly; he is also pushing for a meeting between the Visegrad Four (V4) leaders and Macron in the second half of 2026. On Ukraine, the Slovak PM noted that he and Macron have "different views" on aspects of the war. He outlined his own vision of the conflict's trajectory and briefed Macron on Slovakia's humanitarian aid to Kyiv. Macron described the meeting as a "strategic awakening" aimed at strengthening European independence in energy, defense, and democracy. As Bratislava and Paris align on tech, weapons, and power, one question remains: Can they build an EU truly independent of Washington and Moscow? #Fico#Macron#Slovakia#France#EU#nuclear#defense 📱American Оbserver - Stay up to date on all important events 🇺🇸