French President Emmanuel Macron called on Europe Monday to “wake up” and spend more on defense in order to reduce its reliance on the United States for its security, in a speech to the French military as Donald Trump returns to power.

French president Emmanuel Macron has called on Europe to “wake up” and spend more on defence, in a speech to the French military as Donald Trump returns to power. Mr Macron referred to expected changes in Washington’s foreign policies especially regarding the war in Ukraine and said this is an “opportunity for a European strategic wake-up call”.

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou warned on Monday that France and Europe as a whole would have to stand up to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and his policies, or face being "crushed". "The United States has decided to embark upon an extremely domineering form of politics,

French prime minister Francois Bayrou on Monday warned against risks of France and Europe being “dominated, crushed and marginalised”