Theres no better place than to be in the u. S. To step back and ask what do we have achieved in the last. Years when i look back i see that in the last years europeans have begun to understand that they can in a european way that we must pave our own way to stay relevant in the 21st century for me is in the way europeans are changing the way they look at themselves and starting to see you are as capable of being strong and being sovereign. We europeans often do not see ourselves as being powerful when you look at europe you probably see facts you see 450 million citizens you see 27 countries united around a common political project. You see a quarter of the gdp. You see the bigger straining blood and probably we hope you see diplomatic power. When we europeans we look at ourselves we often do not see this power. We see we sold out divisions disagreements. Consensus on important decisions. And this is changing. It is changing because of my front president is putting a lot of energy the capabilities we have in the power we already have to take initiative when example the European Maritime mission, and the strait of our most. It is also what we do inside. It is also what weve done jointly to evacuate citizens from china. It is also what were trying to do real crony virus. These are small examples of the many situations, even crisis situations, where europe is back and incapacitate to take initiatives. In my view from what i take from the 11 months i now have as minister for state of European Affairs than there is a willingness to act as europeans, to make our own independent decisions. This is what i take from the many meetings i have been having around europe and 27 Member States not been to all of them but almost all of them and everywhere i feel there is a growing consensus what we call the agenda for european sovereignty. This is what i want to tell you about in a few words, and im sure we will have plenty of time for questions. For me, european being sovereign means three things. First, it means we need to have the wheel to find as europeans the answers to the main challenges of our time. To propose a european away on climate change, and two days ago the European Commission proposed its climate law, its way to implement the green deal to be a Carbon Neutral continent by 2050. An agenda on digitalization. How can promoting innovation while respecting human values privacy, the corn set of values that we think and round taxation is of the essence of the european project. It goes also on social protection. How do you ensure people that when they work they can leave above the poverty line and we can answer to them social progress and social justice. We can also go to migration, where we want to propose a solution that is most efficient, humane and organized solidarity and responsibility. The first aspect of sovereignty to provide answers to the challenges of our time. Second, how do we ensure conditions of our autonomy. Our independence. No sovereign power is dependent independent from another. When it comes to food, we want to continue to invest in the Common Agricultural post and technology this, is why we are heavily investing in a number of Strategic Value chains, take for instance electric batteries. We have to be strategic and are not autonomous to defend ourselves. This is why we are trying to build defense capacities with european norms. We also want to have a trade policy that is consistent with our values and collective interests. Mutual sovereignty that we have to build with the u. S. With the uk after brexit. Making climate and essential clause with the paris agreement, not just anecdotal decoration setting. It is at the core of the autonomy to build and provide within our partners. It also goes with the protection of democracy. To protect the elections, the process is that are now being sometimes interfered by foreign powers. Here again, how do we build autonomy. A third way to think about european sovereignty is to be able to protect our own interest. For instance, engaging with russia, with a name their neighbor whether we like it or not when we are in europe. Also taking up responsibility for our neighborhood especially, i can revert to it and the questions you might have. Also taking initiatives whenever our interests are at stake making our rules heard under International Stage to defend multiculturalism, to defend biodiversity, to defend a number of topics where we feel our interests, where we need also to get your partners. Its also a way to invent a new relationship with the united kingdom. In a way that respects european sovereignty. We dont want to punish the british people. We dont want to win and for them to lose. What we want is to keep a fair trade agreement in a way to protect our citizens, families, citizens, whoever asks to have brexit, and we will not understand that we signed a deal that we suffer from unfair competition. Its also an answer that we need to provide after the european elections. Citizens and may 19 that went to the polls polling stations, they gave a signal which is not what you are expecting. They were expecting populous, europeans to win in fact they didnt. If people give us the stressed for us to build new agenda a new european agenda, we have to be achieving concrete results. For me what is even more Important International goals that we set for self, it is the obligation to obtain results because our citizens will not accept that we will continue to make promises without delivering tangible changes. The biggest reach for europe is not so much that discussion between title powers and titles, european is trying to be with china. It is not so much to revive. And the lack of trust of its own citizen, we find that these projects is pretending protecting them very concretely. For me, in my daily life, in my daily job if i can talk so. We are trying to have a new method of work. To be able to achieve more quickly majorities. To build coalitions where we can go faster from a proposal to an agreement to implementation. It means that im trying not to believe there is magic and brussels, not just because heads of sales and governments will come to europe building. At night they might fight by chance, agreements no one could have built before. Gradually, we are trying to in large circles, change formats, to innovate diplomatically. So stepbystep, we increased the circle. Take Carbon Neutrality. At the beginning it was a dutch french proposal. Two countries. Then eight, nine, 20, 24, and at the end 28. It is a method, it is a process. This is the way we can provide for the people more trust and more capacity to show that in details we can move forward for them. Not only as europeans, signing treaties and doing diplomatic relations. It is not about diplomatic relations, it is a part of it, but the biggest part of the project is protection and outcomes for people. To finish, i want to share a discussion ive been having with officials, congressman, business leaders. We are discussing details where the United States and europe does not see eye to eye. We discuss trade, defense, issues like iran and syria. At the end, my main message to all was that we see that the u. S. Are increasingly following National Interests which is perfectly legitimate. But this is the way, and the reason why we also need to as europeans to protect our interests. Our interests are to have a strong partnership. It is to have a strong alliance. The alliance between europe and america will be strong if europe is strong. If we can genuinely protect our own interests in a dialog where we see ourselves as equals. It is a new situation. We have to come to the conclusions. We need to learn, and decide for ourselves. To propose solutions to our partners as well, not just wait for them to define a roadmap we can follow. Being allies does not mean to be followers, it does not mean to be aligned, it means to Work Together and fulfill common goals that we have set for ourselves. It does not mean to cut our long ties and friendship with longstanding allies like the u. S. To conclude as you see this agenda of sovereignty is not opposed to a transatlantic friendship. Ive even said the contrary. I think president mike home as always said that the u. S. Is and always will remain a large partner. A partner that we need and with whom we share the same values. I think we will stay transatlantic and we will become more european. It is not a but but its in and. It goes together. Take the example of european the sense. We have this idea of investing more in those capabilities to enlarge our capacity to take military action together. By doing this, we are not weakening the transatlantic alliance, we are making it stronger by making the european component stronger. I think it is a positive evolution. We are our a stronger ally, a more independent ally and we can continue together on the basis of genuine shared interests wherever they exist. We are ready to take up our own responsibility where the diverge and i believe it will make the transatlantic relationship more balanced, more interesting and probably more ambitious. Because it will be following the objectives we want to achieve together. It is an introduction for my own sake but im really happy to have an open and lively discussion with all of you. Im happy to see you are all interested by europe and i am ready to share with you what we have tried to do back on the old continent. Thank you very much. applause thank you minister. Youve insisted both on how ambitious the european agenda is and how it is central to president macrons agenda. But also the innovating methods and formats. I think its interesting to have this conversation with you because you embody the new generation of political leaders that came with president macrons election. Coming from the private sector and being elected and now minister on these issues that are so central to his term. Im sure we will talk more about this with all of you. Before going into more strategic issues. Obviously europe is going through two major crisis right now. The first one is the response to the coronavirus. It is a global crisis, not specifically european. But it strikes once again at the heart of the common project of open borders. Especially something that you would think would underline why the eu is useful. Cooperation, being able to have technical change exchanges between countries. It seems on the contrary that it is once again fueling populist anger in europe. I want to know how you think europe should respond to this crisis . Thank you very much. At the current moment, the Health Ministers of the 27 countries are meeting in brussels. Its the third meeting theyre having together in the last two or three weeks. They are permanently in contact but its an area where there is no european competence. Its an area where the European Institution provides the setting, the place if i say so we can that is the exchanges governments rams you know governments but there is no infrastructure for tackling precisely but in a pandemic at a european escape particular downsizing day in the we have symptoms of of Civil Protection mechanisms that were used typically to repatriate european citizens from china. Just for you to know, the planes were french, but the people were all europeans, and we have a system where the european budget was funding 75 of the costs to make sure that those investoring for the infrastructure, like france, repaid in a way to provide this infrastructure for the whole benefits of the whole european citizens. So what were trying to do at the moment is to coordinate. And to provide the most coordinated frame work, so as decisions are made consistently with scientific background and without too much dispersion. Typically on borders, it was always discussed by all the countries together on how to manage the flows of people. How to organize the quaurnrantines, how to make something consistent. If you were in lomlombardia two weeks ago, if you are french or german or a slovak, we tried to provide a unified set of measures, so people understand that things are being done in a consistent manner. We also at the moment were working collectively at the medical equipment, on the mask, on the solutions. To control and maybe you can see that its a ban to exports in between countries. That was not the objective. The news the objective is first to and make sure that we have in all you expect countries, capacity to produce and to export in impeaching their donothing particular to European Countries and that is countries and not elsewhere. So theyre also so we are also learning warning by doing by doing. Because its an area where there because its a scenario is no european where there is no european confidence competence. For sure that you can formally hes very useful how but its very useful to this is gushing wrongdoing have these discussions going. But i also see what i also see is this crisis will also probably lead us to be more sovereignty and autonomy of production in some goods, because after, you know, fukushima, we also tested how integrated our value chains were, but also how far they were, but also how fragile they could be, because sometimes we lack one, you know, manufacturing one country and you see consequences for everybody. I think we will probably test again the places, the segments, the value chains where we need to have european production back on the european continent, to make sure we can sustain a number of services and goods for the citizens. So i think we will learn with it. We try to have a balance between precaution, but not panic. Also to be clear that we will not close europe for six months. We need to provide to the people, you know, services. We need to economy to continue to keep functioning. So we are at the stage which is given the number of people infected, i know and understand to be the u. S. Case, but thats the way we are proceeding. The other crisis i want to ask you about, obviously, is once again, the consequences of the crisis in syria and the fighting between russian and turkish troops in idlib and a potential new migration crisis in greece and bulgaria. Weve seen, obviously, the leaders of the European Union go to greece, affirm their solidarity. I would love to hear your thoughts on, first, what do you think is the risk of a new migration crisis, how the European Union can respond to it. But also more broadly how the eu can be more assertive and play a role in syria with a conflict thats been going on for a decade with direct consequences for european security. Providing the media to provide political to the conflicts in a framework next to exit his condition a fear of violence and that people and humanitarian crisis. We were supporting the action in the elaboration we were seeing it as also a way to protect the population against the regime and russia action. What we see and the greek turkish border, we all know about it, there was an organized flow of people that were refugees in turkey for quite awhile 6 Million People which are displaced people in turkey, that europe as you know is investing money to provide them humanitarian conditions, which we try to do is as just possible. Screening of people of children. And saw the turkish regime bringing these people to the border to a place where we all know the border is closed. It was a form of blackmail. It was a put away to put pressure on europeans for them to potentially go talk to mr. Putin to take action in a way which we thought was not appropriate the message of europe so far we understand the gang in place. We do not want to play this game. We are very strong and not playing the game of the blackmail in a way that put putin on our shoulders. Also we had a special meeting at the european level, you see the communicating. I cannot tell you with in detail with the drafter conclusion points but the draft was about making sure that the humanitarian response of europe was trump, bring support to the population endanger but also in turkey. Its a question of money. It is not money from turkish regime its money for people on turkish soil. When it comes to the migration part is we are working for a new migration packed. The proposal of the union in the coming weeks probably april or early may maximum, the plan we are putting discipline to overcome the big divide and divisions he lived in 2015. At the moment where we could not organize organize the solidarity and responsibility. China is as old as i am. He was signed the same years that i was born. At that time people had good intuition. They said we need to provide internal because we will have external strong orders. Its not a question of having fortress and putting people back in the country. It is a question efficiency and of knowing who isnt trying and who is coming up. After 34 years, with the leg on the internal free movements very strong the leg the capacity to have borders which are bargeboard ors is not strong. We need to have orders where we dont whos entering and whos coming out then we have to be in full solidarity with countries who are exploding with refugees. There was a concept of bringing protection to those in danger we did not breach our position of it to provide smelter housing schooling to people between wars and conflicts. What we need to do is to be very strong against illegal immigration and traffickers organize this illegal immigration. This is where we need borders where we can understand who the people are. If they are refugees we can provide them shelters and if the number of entries is limited or the number of people as high to make sure that there is enough capacity in the European Company continental welcome his people. If countries do not want to take people, they have to contribute to the solidarity by other means, money, people, infrastructure, this is very. We cannot have the quota system that we thought in 2015. It cannot work, but everybody must play a role. This is very strong, this is what were trying to build. From germany and many others are supporting this. The first and three country lee named cypress, montana, greece, spain italy, are also working together to see how they can make it all function. As i said and my introductory remarks. The question is efficiency, capacity, not so much the capacity to say nice things, but to show the european people we can be interest with them by doing what we say we will be doing. I want to talk about how you talk about the eu and a lot of people are talking about europeans being able to play politics. Turkey is a complicated neighbor for the European Union and nato and theres a big divide here in washington about the relationship with turkey. We see turkish intervention in libya recently. We see the conflict with greece over Energy Exploration eastern mediterranean. Turkey is still a member within the union union how do you think the europeans should think of the relationship with turkey . We need to have this debate. The the president this is where the president , the famous the economist interview trying to try to do is say we need to have a Strategic Review of our objectives. Of our works what does not work. Quick question different crisis also make a rise, and be in the capacity to have a common greeting, a common diagnosis, action, or change, or reforms if we need to undertake these reforms and changes. Indeed on nature on migration on a number of questions we need to engage in the long, and from a common view to engage and i. Law this is the work we are undertaking. This is what we are discussing. We do not seek confrontation we do not see the changes. Weve seen we seek to have a common voice. This is the whole effort if you listen to jazz up hala will have said in the last days he said we have we need to be in the capacity to resist. We need to engage more with mr. At one. With mr. Putin. Doesnt mean we will be going back to business as usual. Does not mean we will accept the way things are around the maritime zones. Wintry gauged and processes with libya they must continue with dialog we need a line of dialog. Indifference will not bring anything to the discussions which is. Had you just mentioned the dialog with mr. Putin. Obviously another complicated neighbor, president macron, has launched sort of a gamble by trying to establish a new form of dialogue with moscow. Its creating stirring a lot of debates both here and obviously in other european capitals. Can you explain to us what the president s strategy is and first its not a gamble. Its serious. And its the outcome of an analysis that we have that the status quo is not satisfactory. Whats happening in crimea, in many foreign conflicts around in cyberspace. Is not satisfactory. It means we need to have this movement because we know that there is an option that the russians, the frozen conflicts. Its to free the conflict. And then make things, you know i was a few months ago. Theyre in the same situation since 1993. Is it providing any solution to the people, no its frozen. Our view was we needed to engage without naivety that things would change in the day or the night. But the idea is if we keep if we get the dotted line, if we isolate totally russia. Probably the outcomes would be those who settle the score. We are trying to engage. We are taking our time. We dont know where its going. We are very concrete and strong on the fact that we will not normalize things just for the sake of normalization. But we are step by step engaging. The ambassador you might know well, hes our special envoy. Hes both speaking with the russians and also explaining and with the Different Countries in london and germany and all of the states to create a true transparency on what has been discussed. And we we are therefore moving. Our view is as we cannot put such a big power like russia in a place of isolation. We need to have dialogue. And again, im really insists on this. Without naivety. We know the cyber differences are important. We know what is we need to be progressing but if you have a normal format meeting in paris its because we engaged very forcefully. To be very clear we are engaging not to the ukrainians. Were not organizing this without the ukrainians. We are with them. Were talking to them a lot. And we are putting our Political Capital with germany in this, you know, debate. So we can see things moving. You know, prison exchanges, all those things happened. Its not magic, its not tend of the game but we try to keep things moving. This is the objective were following and we are very honest. One day well see if things are going progressing enough or not. But we feel that we cannot just consider its satisfaction. We have invested a freak here in others who would love to follow up on that specific topic. Tennis collapsed question because you are here in washington. It is interesting for a minister to come to washington and talk to your american counter parts. The atlantic information has been strained a key question of both sides of the atlantic. President macron has made a point to keep strong personal relationships with president trump. At the same time making peace of european sovereignty and autonomy. We are entering fully into conveying mode here in the u. S. And with different visions the relationship with europe. If you think europeans expect from the United States and this relationship . All you have well, i think we were allies and we are allies based on values. The capacity representing democracy. The capacity to protect freedoms and the belief in progress in technology. At the service of people. I work with great i read with great interest the oped where he was calling on the u. S. To invest and to recreate trust on our technology. The word europe is not in oped but theyre doubling the r d at the european level for 6g and digital and investing in technology that people can trust. These norms on 5g and others to make sure that on biotech and other issues we are trying to go in the direction that i think Many Americans would see as something theyre also expecting for their own future. So these sharing of values of willingness to protect democracy, of protecting literal societies protecting liberal societies with a number of limits also to what you know, to what progress can bring to society i think something which provides us a very strong basis under which to continue to build the transatlantic relationship which is genuine and provide progress to other countries. I think this is a very strong engine for future endeavors. Look at the americans who are increasing massively their presence in the investment in france. This is a way that embodies and shows that this relationship can be both ways and balanced. There are challenges for sure. We just talked about number one, number of challenges. And number of situations where we need more dialogue. Where we need also to be more acting together. To share more and act to share more outcome, objectives more together. But sometimes we europeans we provide potentially new ways, openings that are maybe not those that the americans will first describe. Or undertake. But might be also opportunities. Again, no naivety. A strong belief in things that we know we built over the centuries and decades and the capacity to work with also bipartisanism. This is why the president took energy to create a personal relationship with the american president. Because we need to have a strong as french, and as europeans we need a strong relationship with the u. S. And also to you know, eyes open on the things where we might not have the same but to keep nurturing this relationship. Open up to all i think we can open up to our review and take your questions. Please introduce yourself before you ask the question. Do not make a speech ask an actual question. Do we have someone . Lets start here and we will get to ambassador fried. There is a mic coming. Hello, im benjamin im a student from germany. You were talking about the goal of keeping safe borders in europe. I just wanted to ask about the concrete situation were at now on the turkish greek border. With rubber bullets being shot at immigrants. How do you propose dealing with this concrete situation without betraying European Values . What we will be talking seriously with the turks and putting these people under safe conditions. Safe conditions is not, you know, five meters from the greek border. These people were brought actively by the people i dont know if the regime or not, but actively these people were not coming directly from idlib. The they could go and they could go and then it was open which was not. The border was open and we need to work with the turkish authorities. We need to provide for the people beyond the geopolitics and pressure. I think this is for me the route well take and on the islands in greece and elsewhere, we have to fully respect the international law. Fully respect the humanitarian principles we have. Typically for children. Who are being denied you know, minors or i dont know how to say it in english, but yes, we have to provide the humanitarian response. We have to work with the turks so the agreements we have signed to provide humanitarian conditions for sheltering, for housing and schooling is respected and to engage in an in respecting the commitments we have both made to provide the best solution to a crisis which is demanding, which is challenging. And which we know are the roots needs to be solved by a political response in syria. Ambassador freed, distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council and former secretary of state for and a very toronto very six unsuccessful attempts a dialog with russia. I applaud your arguments for strong youre aligned with the United States. Solid arguments, well delivered im all for. Dont mistake me. My question about the dialog with russia, is that such dialogues usually start out exactly as you lead it up status quo is not good, not working, we have to try something. The dialog, he attempted dialog sewers and with a seuss of union union al unilateral gestures on the part of the United States or europe which is pocketed by the russians. That is not always true. Can we manage with gifford russian regimes, gorbachev her once im not against i log in particular but the questions are, how are you going to avoid the traps us successive concessions and gestures of goodwill, which may not be shared by putin . Should and should attempts a dialog go in parallel with at least the preparation of additional steps to put pressure on russia if you are wrong . European affairs. So first of all, we are keeping you know the we are keeping the sanctions, we are keeping the whole response that we had after the crimea and after the other events. Dumbas events. I think thats very important to keep in mind. Were not by engaging in dialogue weakening things that were put in place and where the conditions of going backwards are very well known. We know how and what has to be done for the sanctions to be lifted. I think, you know, its very interesting because i had the honor of also the task to be chairing the commission of the council of europe. You know, which is the institution, which is the eu, the institution where we are 47 countries. The whole continent and russia including. I was chairing the committee of ministers when russia was when the allegation was taken back in the organization. Also because we saw that we cannot promote militaries everywhere on the planet if we cannot take of our only troop the institution at the european level. Between gorbachev as you said and now, a number of things evolved. Typically the council of europe. Typically, a number of projects on the european continent that were not existing at the time. And in between i think a number of progress have been made in our capacity to engage a dialogue on a number of issues with russia. Our view is that at the moment russia tried to be an asian country. An asian power. It didnt work. Well, i think you know, its the organization that we all can have. Thats not probably the future for russia. They tried to go in places like middle east, like africa, and we see also the limitation it provides to all of us. Our sentiment is russia is by definition a power which has to have which is a european power in a way. Not the same with the eu, but its in the grand europe, and in italy or its in europe. Our view that we cannot in the long term have this power next to us without having in some way a dialogue. A lively dialogue. You know, we are putting and we have trying to find find ways to engage in concrete issues like cyber, where we feel we can make progress. I think the number of the meeting that was held a few weeks ago in paris president zelensky, president putin, president macron, were in the same room. After a number of steps on the prisoner exchange, on on a number of things is a on the prisoner exchange, on on a number of things is a progress. For sure its not the end of the process. For sure, you know, there are still conflicts, still, you know, elements of violence, the flow, the organization is not subsidized we know that. But our sentiment is it would be irresponsible aal irresponsible to think that the status quo is satisfactory. I understand what you say. It was attempted before, sometimes its failed. Sometimes its succeeded so smally that nobody understood so it was a success. In the meantime, a lot of things have happened. We have to, you know, take this into account. Typically the council of europe. You know, russia is russian citizens have access through the European Court of human rights to the recourse if they feel their rights are among the protected. Wrongly protected. Russia is then sometimes often content to protect prisoners. To protect freedom of speech, to protect people demonstrating in the streets and russia is implementing these and this was not achievement if we had not, you know, everybody gamed in the dialogue which is challenging. Where we cannot know exactly the leaders but we feel we have the responsibility to keep an open mind. I think the quotes in the last days is very important. Yes, for sure we have a difference of view and yes for sure we have confrontations on many issues with turkey, with russia. But as, you know, just neighbors, russia is a neighboring country, from finland, from poland. From all of our eastern border of many countries. We cannot just we have to engage more and this is what we are trying to do. We are trying to do it very transparently. Theres a high level of sharing of information, exchanges with our partners and also because we are, you know, at the Security Council france is the now only permanent member of the Security Council member of the eu. And we think that for many of the other things and topics we need to have this dialogue live. Without we are lucid. There was no in the process, but which think its of high value to do it. 24 National Economy minister going to see in washington my question my question is on your portfolio as minister for European Affairs. President mike holmes made a speech and sobering university in waiting or european flag i was elected waving a european flag. He exactly so that was quite that was something new. The interview and i think also remember that the sort and speech deliver nothing, that there is nothing to show for. His vision and basically macrons european vision is a failure what do you think about . This that is a good way to be straight. I think i thank you for the question because being straight is useful. If you look at the situation where the president came in 2017, who can more or less describe our european action in three steps. First step was to shake the idea debate, to renew our ambition, to show what we could do as europeans. After a period doing what many people felt this project is we can act, we had difference of agreements, lots of tensions with the speech was also way to say the items outweighs what europeans can do things. We try to open the debate that was for the for 18 months of the mandate of the president. Then came the moment the question was okay with these ideas, can we have a team to support these ideas . This was a new commission the truth of the commissioners, the new parliament, the renewed group at the central of the european parliament. This was about creating a team to carry forth our ideas. Now we are in phase three, phase three is indeed the moment of credibility test now that we have the ideas know that we have can we deliver this was in my introductory mark. So the main goal for the european project is not so much the crisis around other big partners and big powers. It is our capacity to deliver for the people, for the trust of the cities in europe to be revived, not on promises or words or speeches, but a capacity to deliver. This is the chop in a sense that i have today. It is to create majorities. Under parliament with renewed litigation with our partners but also at the Council Level with whom do we implement this road mac roadmap that is now the commission rolled math. For success that 80 85 of the speech control find in the roadmap of the commission is now in the roadmap of the commission. The commissioners if you look at the different commissioners have settled themselves as objectives and have been endorsed by the parliaments 85 of what the president said is in the roadmap. The speech decided he became with our partners, with the european circles. I totally agree with the. If we are not able to move these road maps into our roadmap. It goes with european budgets, we need to put the means in front of our ambitions. And if they are for the european budget hes ready to work more as soon as the content of our actions at the level of ambition we need. We are not paying for a budget which is below expectations we are ready to contribute, to put means in front of our missions it goes also without capacity in the coalitions of 67 countries doing to the majority this is why im trying to go and have new agreement points with the nordic countries, with spain, portugal. Were now inventing, my team is always trying to fly names on the formats we are creating. For doing meetings czech republic, austria. Giraffe it geographic meetings, not geographic meetings. This is what we have to do now. Not so much provide new ideas but to win the two with the teams in the people we have greater alignment with the commission which was not the case for many many years. For many years, front fronts was not aligned with the commission. To move forward, and in deliver results. We france have a big responsibility. In 2022 we will be having the presidency of the council for six months, from the 1st of january 2022 to june 2022. Its an important moment to have French Election the moment where the president will have to look at what he has done for five years in france, and we will have at the same time, the responsibility of sharing the works at the european level. I understand your skepticism the skepticism which is shared. I think at the moment seeing in 2020 to 2020 for his two commission did we achieve to do what was in the road maps of the different conditions commissioners we do shall so we can go back to the speech and see what was put on the table has been done and made real. Let me follow up on this question and made a nine, launched a white conference on the future of europe can you tell us what you expect from this conference in this effort the. President trump poses, the sovereign speech was made of things we can achieve in the next five. Years if we are in a good functioning way we have time and we have the capacity to put all the speech into agreement and implementation by 2024 the question we want to raise jointly as what do we do next . What is or what we look after . What is our true longterm objective . I could provide are there other things visited with the citizens, and with a common enough you wide effort. Not just france, germany are six founders countries meeting as were used to meeting for many many years. And defining for the rest of the continent what we want to do. And many countries, im very interested by the subject is education and training. It is a big expectation of the whole society if you look europe has competence to work on the research very nightly on high educational the only place mobility typically if we want to create a trump european approach to training retraining then our treaty at the moment we set ourselves common objectives but where we wont have the true competence. We can discuss health. Do we want to put more in common with health. On climate were doing a lot in proposal, on patients do we need more incompetence is at the european level . We want to engage this debate but we want to do it at the european wide level. We want to do the citizens. And we want for the next five years after 2020 for the roadmap which will not be something designed from the people with a vision. We think of method and process. We want to be innovative in the way to conduct this conference typically by potentially choosing people randomly up to, put in a place where could be discussed people that will not come naturally to discuss european projects. When i go and traveling fronts you i try to go actively places where the european money, projects, action is being implemented to also show what yard does. Youre is a lot of programs, investments, capacity to put people together. When i go there i can tell you. Half of the room is filled with pro europeans people that are on fire they in many ways. Hope the other half of the room says europe is the cause of all the problems they. No from the time theyre worn to the time where they will under their lives on the planet. This is not very functional. This is not leaving leaving us anywhere. People without arguments and settings to actually think together. With a citizen conventions 150 citizens that were chosen randomly to kind to be kind of the representation of French Society yellow people farmers businessman, employees. It is a set of people working together on how we can tackle climate change. Theyre surrounded by experts there put in confrontations where they can agree to the complexity of the decisions to be made. We would like to do the same for the european project. To confront people and to bring in the room of people that would not come naturally. Those people that at the end are the ones for whom we want to deliver. They have the pieces of the legitimacy of european projects. It is a project for citizens. Sometimes my ministry is embedded which i have many monologues at different places. Smore linked to the Prime Minister some are linked to the head of state and it gives a very different perception to the people of what is europe about. In france because truman and mueller would diplomats there is this perps up shun that europe is about making agreements with foreign country S Foreign Affairs diplomacy. In fact if you look this is only a small part of what we do. This is why thinks this conference will also be interesting. How do the sears do you expect from how do you want to still confidence . Its a way to regift competence at a National Level if confidence is at the european level at the right level action. It will be a very important moment to recreate a debate of idea started by and from the people. Karen rod. I thank you for years but first talk first of all congratulations and great that youve come to washington for this kind of conversation. So he havent said too much about determining the news history of the franco of sherman partnership and where is it going now what is germany situation what this germany mean to you as you work through this program in the agenda. How important is that relationship still and how is the changing . Well im the secretary general to the franco a german relationship we wear different hats in the administrative and diplomatic system we are constantly having dialog on many details many strategic choices permanently my ministry is in constant context secretary general is coming to my secretary general every two weeks. We are actively engaged. The chancellery. We are talking all the time to each other, but we realize that with the enlargements, the changes and dynamics, it is not because france or germany will be agree that everything will be okay and done. We are on each side, trying to create different alliances. Diplomatic word new biological work we are undertaking. We realize typically, Carbon Neutrality, france and germany agreed. We were green. I just asked for things to become unanimity choice. What we also realize is now after brexit poland germany and france will represent 70 of reduction. If you look at this and this is why i took the decision to have a new landmark summit french german poland as soon as january. There will be a new summit at the level of states poland germany france will meet at the highest level. Typically i think its very important to create now that the brits are no longer me in germany at the moment leaving a different synchronization. We are in the middle of the mandate of five years. We are in a stable position. The president isnt a capacity to be in a freedom of movement agility. In germany, it is the end of a cycle. We see a lot of internal questions on the priorities, political dynamics, and this created a discrepancy. Sometimes it was reversed. We had moments where germany was waiting for the french to respond, for the french to be organized, respond to initiatives that germany was taking. The question is not so much confrontation, not so much opposition, its more a question of momentum and the synchronization in terms of political cycles. As the president said in munich patients more in patients and confrontation. Willingness to assisting in moving quicker, but we know a definition, election will come and they will come and probably not before the end of the general presidency of the eu, so not before december. Which is still see from the eyes of my president , quite a long time to go. Let me follow up because you mention the triangle so the relationship with france germany and poland. President macron was in poland recently. It was as first visit to warsaw. What is he expect from this relationship that has also been challenging the last few years . Germany in poland have typically on as, semi protection the whole production agenda of europe, and this is very important. The competition. And when it came to sign it was a letter signed by pulled an island belgium in france. It was an innovative format. Were trying to work topic right topic, subject by subject. To find places where we want countries to move together. Indeed, on brexit, poland is very close to france when it comes to little playing field, citizens rights, and even fisher. We see a number of topics where we have genuine common interest. These are the ones we are trying for every country, sri lanka, romania, spain, portugal. We have common agendas and we are trying to make the most of the common points we have. After that with poland, we also have a very clear in open message on the need, only fully support the commission and the institution regarding rights. We have institutions that have to be strong and dealing with the full respect of the treaty. We fully support the commission. The court of justice. With that on the right ballot basis we try jointly to put and push forward agendas where we know we are genuinely aligned. To make sure everyone has an opportunity to ask a question lets take a couple each time. We will start here second and third row. I think you. I would like to ask you the issue of how the issue of sovereignty and that a freedom you can see experience why did you perceive in your living experience at the many levels at the individual institutional level, if there is some tangible example you can make of. Thank you. Please introduce yourself. Hi im Martin Miller students as well. What are your comments on yesterday ceasefire agreement between russia and turkey for ad lib syria. . It will take another round of questions after. Second question is. Its welcome, its needed, its necessary. After that again, we need syria to be putting a political process which we not only depend on the meetings in moscow with mr. Putin. We need to put again a lot of Political Capital to have the political process to move on. This cannot be done if you have bombs, planes, warfare. It is welcome it is needed, it is necessary and not sufficient at all to imagine a medium term process. Regarding your question i think typically what we have built around privacy, the way europe has to find its own data privacy agenda is a sovereignty action. Now we have japan, india. Ive seen players saying that the sheep years a very good and interesting this is sovereignty this capacity to defend your own rules, and make the rules interesting and taken up by other places of powers. On freedom, i think all the work being done in europe on violence against women, for instance, or freedom of the press, freedom of rights, its an agenda based on the fundamental values of freedom and willingness to protect the individual of the set of collective rules that we try to fully implement. Lets take a couple other questions here and then okay. Hello from Washington University frost was. I want to ask you about syria. There is this idea that we as European Countries that are hoping to receive more refugees and that is a common thinking of the populist grounds in europe. You are talking about how the court system failed. How is france preparing in the case of millions of more seeking refuge and europe. How is fronts going to take action . Is it going to be on the side of those who provide the means as you mentioned, have a country willing to host. Thank you. Check i check nelson from the department of state. My question is about china. This is going to be a big year and you china relations with the summit and spring, and the leaders meeting with germanys in this presidency we which will take place in life like in september. Id be curious to know the french governments expectation and helps our for you china policy under the new commission and counsel, and what role the idea of systemic rivalry and human rights will play and that . So immigration. France is currently the first country in terms of numbers application for asylum seeking in 2019, france was just at the same level, a bit higher level than germany. We are a country receiving the highest level of secondary movements. The current summit we see is not functional. Afghan families when they seek asylum in france on average the last twice in two other country as i learned before. We have no capacity to have common reading of what is asylum seeking and what the rules are in for europe, so it creates a lot of secondary movements. We do not have a common approach to which country is providing social means, eight feet, subsidies, social subsidies to people. We need to reorganize this. For this reorganization, france, we are not a country refusing people on our sore. The votes in the middle of the mediterranean, lots of people came to france. I just want to remind all of you. The number of people that were on boats welcomed in europe is less than 2002. The images we have give near impression we have ten or 100. It is 2000 people. Many came to france and limited numbers and i think its important to go back to the facts because the imagery can be distorted. We are a country well ready to welcome but we need things to be organized. We need to stop the endless secondary movements and we need to give people flexibility. For the rules to be clear. At the moment in the same person the same family that we apply that made an application for asylum in germany will not have the same answer than in france or italy or ireland or sweden. This creates a lot of this organization. Our physicians not so much about the number, not the principal position. Your principal position is constitutionally, we received and we take applications for anybody and situations of risk. This is an our constitution. This will not change. But we need for the european system to be more functional. When it comes to china, first we welcome its capacity for europeans to work in a united manner with china. When president macron went to shanghai he was with European Commissioner and the german minister. This changed totally the tom, the content of the discussion. It was not just france going. He was france and the european power. Also in germany restocking with china. It was germany as european power. We seek reciprocity. We made Good Progress with the actual the indication of production. This is very important to protect producers on those sites. The next step this protection of investment. For its a priority. We work on climate, Carbon Pricing for the thinking we have in europe on the carbon inclusion on the water is something where we think we can do progress with china. There is a number of places where its been discussed for quite awhile and we expect things team forward. The key word is reciprocity. We tried to have it again, a systematic rivalry, its a fact. Now we can work around this and again be loose it without naive tv, and see how it can make progress. As you know france has been always protective of all the citizens and people on individual cases one and situations arising. Three questions here in the back. Hi atlanta im in the east program which is. I was just wondering follow up on the china question. How are you managing france and germany managing to help countries for example greece and italy who are already in the dead trap from china . Its more of the two others and i had my name is near anna im an Exchange Student leniency. Giving francis positions on you and large meant what should we be expecting from europe in terms of macedonias obsession to the eu another the commissioner for enlargement has released progress reports on reforms to say that they might be able to join . One last question here. You saw just just to trump back on relations. In washington since a couple of months i see a lot of skepticism among americans about arab squabble ambitions because often it is pointed out that this is not the first time we have tried to do this. The question is very simple how do we convince our american friends that this time it is different and europeans mean business. I must say im playing the devils advocate because i believe it is different and you are making a good case but i would like to hear your thoughts on this. So with this i know we have five minutes perfect maybe seven. First question on china. I will rephrase it a bit i think we have currently a terrible situation for. We are one of the few continents to export savings while at the same time having to import investment capacity in some country Infrastructure Projects. If i summary yes and greece, portable italy, and slovenian, slovakia if you travel around, which is part of my job, you see that many interesting projects, productive, Infrastructure Projects same for the are being funded by china, by russia, turkey while we, in europe, we have plenty of savings that we can export to buys u. S. Like this is totally dysfunctional. The Banking Union is a key project, but more than the Banking Union, for me we have to create a union for savings and investment. What we lack is not money. We have more than four trillion euros on the saving accounts which are at zero or negative interest rates. We have 1. 7 trillion in france below inflation rate falls with we dont lack of money. We lack the pipes between the savings we have and the productive projects. This is that the hard for me of what we need to do for the european strength in economic terms but also in geopolitical terms. We cannot say no to this countries when they welcome chinese investments. If we are not able to provide european money, european invest thirst, European Investments to respond to Capacity Building our infrastructure Business Growth and sold. For me, with the response you see is not about china, it is about our internal capacity to fund or the savings we have an investment swing. This is a very important topic. For me there is no industrial sme strategy that we will be successful if we dont put alongside the strategy the funding for it. And we are an aging continent, as we have a high level of saving rates, we dont lack saving, relacquer passively to put pipes and organize our savings and our investment system differently. On enlargements. When you said as we know the french position, i am not so sure. The french position is not a position towards enlargement the french position wants to say we think the european perspective of the region is valid. It is historically promises made. We have no intention to go back on the promise we made. We were not ready and this is where the discussion ongoing for quite a long time, we were not ready to sign a mandate which would be the same as serbian montenegro as weve seen for the last six and a year. His process of negotiation did not bring concrete change on the ground, let european sentiments to decline and lead to many foreign powers to have even more influences than they were having before. What we said is, swirl came principle, to reaffirms this european perspective, but we need a process of negotiation to be productive. We cannot sign for something that we know from the beginning will be very challenging and potentially a failure. A failure not only for europe but for the country that we would put on tracks where the capacity for them to succeed on this track is very limited. Which is why we propose just after this october meeting, and you methodology for negotiation. The commission widely undertook and i was proposing which is more gradual that if you do the reforms that would bring more concrete benefits for the people not so much for the administration but for the people on the grounds is reversible if you stop doing the reforms there is a price to pay. Access to policies, and you can go backwards which is more politically driven. The inter governmental conferences about enlargements there are no governments in sight. Theres administration and brussels and you representatives. We need the country to be more involved it is a political silently. Wanted this to be more visible. To have a process which we create credibility on both sides. Capacity for us to explain why we are doing this, how its going and the capacity for the leaders in the region to also explain to the people why we do the reforms, like benefits it brings and so on. Indeed the Commission Proposal and made an update on the reforms and i will see what happens and number of progress on the electoral law that we expect for media and the coming days and weeks on the vetting there are many things that are moving in the political way. A process known as for the