Icon: enlarge
French head of state Emmanuel Macron (left) and his prime minister Edouard Philippe
Photo: Christian Hartmann / AFP
A few weeks after the election victory in May 2017, Emmanuel Macron said his most beautiful sentence about the global climate: "Make our planet great again," he called out to the French and the world in a televised address - state-supportive and serious-looking as only he can.
US President Donald Trump had recently announced that he would withdraw from the Paris climate agreement because this agreement was badly negotiated and to the detriment of the United States.
Only a few hours later, Macron was standing in front of a camera that was quickly set up in the Elysée Palace.
The US has turned its back on the world, he said.
“But I call on you to remain confident.” From now on, France will fight for compliance with the climate targets even more ambitiously than before.
He offered American scientists to come to France, they could find a second fatherland here to work on solutions.
Because: "There is no plan B with the climate because there is no planet B."
It is good news for the saving of the planet when the French President poses as the continent's chief climate protector.
Despite all the criticism, Europe is one of the green pioneers worldwide. At the world climate conferences, the confederation of states, together with island states and particularly endangered countries, has always advocated ambitious goals.
Whether it stays that way depends not only on Germany but also on France's position.
Read more with Spiegel Plus
More perspectives, more understanding.
Your advantages with SPIEGEL +
Icon: Check
SPIEGEL as a magazine
as an app, e-paper and on the e-reader
Icon: Check
All articles on SPIEGEL.de
Exclusive texts for SPIEGEL + readers
Icon: Check
Try one month for free
Cancel anytime online
A price
only € 19.99 per month
One month for € 0.00
Try now for 0.00 € Buy nowArrow to the right
Already have a digital subscription? Register here
Restore iTunes subscription
SPIEGEL + is processed via your iTunes account and paid for with a purchase confirmation.
24 hours before it expires, the subscription is automatically renewed by one month at the current price of € 19.99.
You can cancel the subscription at any time in the settings of your iTunes account.
In order to use SPIEGEL + outside of this app, you must link the subscription to a SPIEGEL ID account immediately after purchase.
With the purchase you accept our general terms and conditions and privacy policy.