French President François Hollande speaks at the inauguration ceremony of the new “Sud Europe Atlantique” (Southern Europe Atlantique) high-speed rail line connecting Tours and Bordeaux in Vilognon, central France, on February 28, 2017. .
John Burnett | AFP | Getty Images
Former French President Hollande emphasized the importance of European unity in the face of U.S. protectionism on security and trade issues.
President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory last week stoked fears of an impending economic nightmare for the European Union after he threatened to impose an additional 10% tariff on the countries.
The move comes as Germany, a traditional economic powerhouse, faces economic malaise and a political vacuum after the collapse of the coalition government. There are also concerns about the war in Ukraine and whether the United States will withdraw funding from the war-torn country, leaving European allies to foot the bill.
Hollande told CNBC’s Charlotte Reid on Wednesday that Europe must be worried.
“Europe today is a disunited continent. So what is absolutely important is the reaction to what Trump wants to do, especially the United States’ breakaway from the continent,” he said.
“This is what France, Germany, Poland and the UK, the four major defense investment countries, will do. If these four countries respond together, whether it is on security issues, whether it is on Ukraine, or even on trade issues , then Europe will be respected, otherwise it will be pushed aside,” he added.
Despite severe political turmoil in Germany and France this year, Hollande said that no matter who is in power, there is still likely to be a “broad political consensus” among these major European countries, which could “firmly resist possible actions by Donald Trump.” ”.
Peace in Ukraine?
Hollande, the former leader of France’s Socialist Party, led the country from 2012 to 2017 and briefly spanned Trump’s first term. He recalled that Trump was often a man of his word.
Trump has previously boasted that if elected he could “end the war in Ukraine” within 24 hours and suggested he would withhold funding to force the country to negotiate a settlement with Russia. Analysts say Ukraine may be forced to make a “bad peace” with its powerful neighbor and may be forced to give up nearly 20% of its territory in the south and east currently occupied by Russian forces.
Hollander predicted that Trump would try to propose a peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin that would exclude Ukraine from the negotiations, potentially allowing Russia to seize territory it already occupies.
“Are we going to let this happen? We must not let it happen,” Hollande said. “Because it would set an extremely serious precedent that force is above the law.”
—CNBC’s Silvia Amaro and Holly Ellyatt contributed to this article.
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