MEPs divided on implications of Macron electoral victory
The reelection of Emmanuel Macron to a second term as French President was good for the whole of Europe, as well as for France, for Ukraine and for Estonia, MEP Urmas Paet (Reform) says.
With that in mind, the election was much more than a mere show, Paet, a former foreign minister, went on.
He said: "In some places, the feeling came from the media ahead of the elections that this was an interesting entertainment show, and that the candidate for the presidency of France would not seem to matter much. However, that was very misleading."
The two candidates represented stark alternatives in the current security situation, he said.
"Macron and Le Pen have very different views and attitudes on important issues concerning European security and the future. The candidates have demonstrated this very clearly in their work to date. Regarding the Crimea, and the way in which Le Pen's colleagues have voted in the European Parliament on resolutions on Russia, it is quite clear that her victory would have brought about a significant change in France's policy towards Russia and to Ukraine," Paet went on, adding this would have drastically altered Europe's security picture.
"This makes the French presidential election more than just exciting entertainment, but also a fundamental choice for the future of Europe, including Estonia. Macron's victory in these elections was required for Ukraine to gain support, and for European security not to go down the drain," Paet added.
More sanctions and continuity in providing more armaments aid to Ukraine are more viable now given the mandate Macron received from the people of France, Paet added.
EKRE MEP: Result a good one for those who want nothing to change
Meanwhile Conservative People's Party of Estonia (EKRE) MEP Jaak Madison said, that the choice of Macron was a good one for those who wanted to continue as before.
Madison told ERR that: "Naturally, it was expected that the politicians in the midst of the establishment were expecting Macron's victory to lead to the continuation of this habitual lifestyle. Macron's victory was the greatest joy for those who want to continue their habitual life."
"Now we can move forward in the same way, whereby Emmanuel Macron can call Vladimir Putin again, a few times a week. We can move on to a life where there have been no concrete tough steps taken against Russia so far. All this would not have been the case if Marine Le Pen had won, because the vast majority of the international community could not then have predicted what would happen next, and how Le Pen would actually rule the country," he added.
Madison also noted the fall in support for Macron compared with the last time he ran-off against Le Pen in 2017.
Marine Le Pen was in Estonia nearly three years ago, as the guest of EKRE. At the time, she said she would like to see France as more of a broker of relations between the West and both Russia and China, and expressed skepticism over NATO - including the participation of French troops in the enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup at Tapa.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte