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At the Economic Meetings of Aix-en-Provence, a call for a European resurgence in the face of Washington and Beijing

by AI | 04.Jul 2025 | Europe in brief AI

A call for a European awakening: at the Economic Meetings of Aix-en-Provence, business leaders and political officials advocate for an emancipated and strong European Union in the face of the United States and China, but lament insufficient efforts to lift it out of its “decline.”

François Villeroy de Galhau, governor of the Bank of France, awaits the family photo during the meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bank governors in Banff, Alberta, Canada, on May 21, 2025. (Photo: Cole Burston / AFP)

Aix-en-Provence (France) – “Trump is obviously something very adverse for the global, American, and European economy, but it is a wake-up call for us,” assured the governor of the Bank of France, François Villeroy de Galhau, on Friday during the Economic Meetings in Aix-en-Provence.

Fragmented industrial policy, high energy costs, bureaucratic burdens, delays in digital technologies… The European Union is lagging behind the United States, whose decision to increase tariffs also affects its economic outlook.

“The opportunity, with what is happening with the new American administration, there is an expectation of a monetary Europe and a possibility of an increased international role for the euro,” continued the central banker.

“This can be done through more European debt, particularly to finance defense, it may perhaps be done through the mutualization of existing national debts. No solution is obvious,” he said.

He also advocated for increased integration of the capital markets. (July 4, 2025)