, Columnist
Europe Isn't Quite as United As It Claims
There is refreshing agreement on some issues, but there are plenty of red lines too.
The face of a united Europe.
Photographer: Jason AldenThis article is for subscribers only.
The choreography could not have been better this week. The leaders of the euro zone’s three largest economies took the stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos one after the other to deliver the same message. In the era of Donald Trump’s “America First,” the leaders of Italy, Germany and France all spoke up to oppose protectionism and embrace multilateralism.
Cooperation will start at home, they pledged: the euro area will strive to forge closer ties starting this year. As French president Emmanuel Macron put it, “we need more ambition to have a more sovereign, united and democratic Europe."