Press release - Phone conversation between President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (2 Dec. 20)

President Macron spoke this evening by phone with Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

He welcomed the strategic consultations held by NATO since the London Summit a year ago and, in this regard, hailed the Group of Experts’ report presented to the foreign ministers on December 1, which provided a helpful, balanced perspective.

He expressed his hope that these consultations would be stepped up and concretized in the coming months in order to strengthen unity, solidarity and cohesion within the Atlantic Alliance – among other things via the adaptation of the 2010 Strategic Concept, which the Heads of State and Government will have to decide on at the next summit on the basis of consultations to be held among the allies in keeping with the letter and spirit of the Washington Treaty.

President Macron underscored his commitment in this regard to stronger European sovereignty, which would help reinforce the transatlantic partnership as it tackles current challenges. The issue of European sovereignty will of course be central to the work on the “Strategic Compass” conducted simultaneously by the EU, which will be completed under the French presidency in early 2022.

During their conversation, the President and the Secretary General also had the opportunity to directly and in confidence address the concerns expressed by a growing number of allies in regard to Turkey’s strategic choices, which must be clarified in a frank discussion within the Alliance in the new transatlantic context.