PARIS (AP) – Germany’s foreign minister said Wednesday that Europe must stand together if it wants to stay relevant as its population shrinks, the U.S. focuses more on Asia, and China’s influence expands.
Sigmar Gabriel warned against retreating into survival-of-the-fittest nationalism and urged a more vigorous European role on the world stage – especially important as Britain’s pending exit from the European Union threatens the bloc’s international standing and future viability.
Gabriel picked a symbolic place for Wednesday’s appeal: the center of Paris, where he attended a French Cabinet meeting and stood with his French counterpart to try to reinvigorate European unity in an address to a gathering of French ambassadors.
“If our children or grandchildren want to have a voice in the world … it will be a common European voice,” said Gabriel, a Social Democrat who also serves as Germany’s vice chancellor.
In future crises, Europe may not always be able to “wait on the U.S. and Russian foreign ministers to come up with a road map” and then see that translated into a cease-fire, he said.