The United States and France could be good “brothers in arms” against Russia, as Joe Biden asked Emmanuel Macron yesterday when receiving him on the first and pompous state visit by a foreign leader to the White House in this term. But the industrial policy of the US president, and specifically the generous subsidies that the Inflation Reduction Act will allocate to products made in the USA in general and particularly to the national industry linked to clean energy, tarnishes the friendship between Washington and Paris. . Macron made it clear to Biden, albeit between hugs and proclamations of loyalty… And at a state dinner with Oregon cheese and California sparkling wine, albeit served in glasses made in France.
The measures gathered in Biden’s star law -with an investment package of 739,000 million dollars, of which 369,000 million will be allocated to promoting the green economy through subsidies to industry- are “super aggressive” for France and Europe, while that discourage production in the old continent, Macron said in his speeches before the US Congress and the French community in Washington.
Such measures by Biden and his government may “solve your problem, but they will make mine worse,” added the French leader. And he considered that the industrial aid of the Inflation Reduction Act, as well as those provided for in the Semiconductor Manufacturing Promotion Act in the US “will fragment the West.” Unless, he stressed, the Americans and Europeans “coordinate with each other” in the “common goal” of creating jobs and fighting competition from China and other Asian countries.
And this was the commitment that Biden and Macron reached yesterday at the White House, as they explained at the joint press conference after their main meeting. “We have to work together,” stressed the US president. And he acknowledged that the law in question has “technical glitches” and “there are adjustments we can make to make sure there is not a domino effect on the projects that are underway in Europe”: an easy commitment to make but harder to deliver. .
“I am confident” in reaching an understanding, Biden nevertheless added. And he stressed that “it was not the intention” of his Administration to harm European companies. “We want to succeed together, not against each other,” he stated. But he also made it clear that he was not going to “apologize” for a political project that seeks to combat climate change, create jobs and improve the economy of his country.
“We have to resynchronize” so that the US incentives to their industry do not harm the European industry, Macron said and repeated for his part… Not without qualifying that he had not come to Washington to give a “proof of love ” to his counterpart and “friend” Biden. The French president also recognized that the Europeans have “much to do” to catch up in the manufacture of chips and semiconductors.
Macron also insisted on the “different consequences” that the war in Ukraine has for Europe, given its enormous energy dependence on Russia. But he and Biden displayed above all their unity in the face of the invasion of Ukraine by Putin’s troops. Both agreed to “hold Russia to account for atrocities and widely documented war crimes” in the invaded country.
Regarding the possibilities of dialogue to find a way out of the conflict, which Macron has been defending with his frequent calls for a return of Moscow and Kyiv to bilateral talks, Biden said that he is ready to speak with Putin, but only “if, in fact , decides that he is prepared to look for ways to end the war.” He also specified that he will not take the step on his behalf and without consulting the NATO allies. Hours before, his French counterpart had announced that he plans to talk with the Russian leader “in the next few days”, as he has done on previous occasions since the start of the war.
Biden and Macron expressed their admiration and respect for Iranians who “courageously stand up” for their “fundamental freedoms.” And they stressed their common concern over China’s increasing activity and provocations in the Indo-Pacific.
Gone was the submarine crisis of a year ago, caused by the rupture of a contract for the sale of French submersibles to Australia due to an alternative agreement between Canberra and Washington and London. After the consequent and serious diplomatic incident between the two countries, Biden apologized for his “clumsiness”. Yesterday, the conflict was distant. And the president of the world’s first superpower recognized Macron as “one of the leaders of Europe.”
