Clive Crook, Columnist

Germany's Enthusiasm for Macron Won't Last

The leaders of France and Germany have different ambitions for Europe.

May 9, 2017 at 1:27 PM UTC

Clive Crook is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist and member of the editorial board covering economics. Previously, he was deputy editor of the Economist and chief Washington commentator for the Financial Times.

Still partners for now.
Photographer: Handout

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

When German Chancellor Angela Merkel congratulated Emmanuel Macron on his "magnificent" victory over Marine Le Pen in the French presidential election, there was no reason to doubt her sincerity. President Le Pen would have been such a disaster for Europe that the Brexit calamity would have seemed trivial in comparison.

Even so, Macron's success and the U.K.'s decision to quit the EU present Germany with mutually reinforcing problems. They put the German conception of Europe's future under pressure.