Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, centre, is surrounded by listeners after a special address as part of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Photo / AP
Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, centre, is surrounded by listeners after a special address as part of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Photo / AP
Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron set out their vision for Europe today as a counterweight to the values of Donald Trump's United States at the Davos World Economic Forum.
The German Chancellor told global business leaders at the Swiss resort that "protectionism is not the answer" and that judging people according to stereotypes is "the very basis of populism".
Merkel called for Europe to "take its destiny in its own hands" with a more active and ambitious foreign policy.
Macron, the President of France, called for the EU to reform itself and come up with a "10-year strategic plan" to compete with China and the US.
He also called on EU countries not to hold back the most "ambitious" member states from moving forward.
Merkel struck a more sombre note, invoking the spectre of two world wars. The world leaders of a century ago had "sleepwalked" into World War I, she said.
"The generation born after World War II must prove it has learned the lessons of history. We see national chauvinism and populism on the rise. In all countries there are doubts about whether globalisation will carry everyone with it.
"Multilateralism is time-consuming. But it's worth it," she said.
"If we rely on the quick fix of the national solution, then others will respond with their own national solutions."
The Chancellor said that she regretted Britain's decision to leave the EU and reiterated her insistence the UK must accept freedom of movement if it wants access to the single market.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Davos, Switzerland. Photo / AP
"It's in their hands how close they want the partnership to be. We are prepared to be open-minded."
Macron may be the darling of this year's World Economic Forum, but here he had to play second fiddle.
"In terms of trade, we're moving towards greater protectionism... we're undoing what globalisation has been able to achieve," he said.
However, he criticised a "race to the bottom" among states and companies who acted like "illegal stowaways" when it came to paying tax or respecting international rules.
Digital giants, he said were in the process of destroying "millions of jobs" with artificial intelligence but failed to pay taxes in France to fund the education of the future workforce, whereas home-grown "start-ups" do.
Macron joked about the heavy snowfall at the Swiss resort, saying it might lead some people to question climate change. "Fortunately you didn't invite anybody sceptical of global warming this year," he said.
