Meanwhile, Germany's conservative election winner Friedrich Merz said his top priority would be to “strengthen Europe as soon as possible” and gradually move toward “real independence” from the U.S.
Only three days after his victory last month, Merz, who has called for a discussion on “nuclear sharing” with France, traveled to Paris for a working dinner with Macron.
No statement was released after the meeting, but French officials with knowledge of the matter said both men's visions for Europe align. They spoke anonymously because the talks were not to be made public.
Russia’s foreign ministry accused Macron of "demonstrative militarism dictated by the domestic agenda.”
The ministry said that Macron seeks to distract the French public from “worsening socio-economic problems in France and the European Union."