French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron will pay a state visit to the Netherlands on April 11-12, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced on Monday.
"
It will be a unique opportunity to celebrate our friendship
," he said after a meeting with the head of state in The Hague, ahead of the European summit on February 9 and 10.
Equal game with the United States
The two leaders also discussed at a press conference the European response to the massive American subsidy plan for green industries.
Mark Rutte, opposed to the adoption of new European financing, above all insisted on the need to first resort to the means available.
"
There is a lot of money in Europe in the already existing pot
", whether it is the EU's "
annual budget
" or the European recovery funds mobilized after the Covid crisis, he said.
Emmanuel Macron has been maneuvering since his visit to Washington in early December to convince the EU to adopt a strong response to the United States' plan of 420 billion dollars for the ecological transition, which provides for generous credits for taxes and subsidies for renewable energy.
Paris would like Europe to be on a level playing field.
Read alsoDutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte wants to alert the EU to immigration
“
Until then there was a political silence on this issue.
I put my feet in the dish by explaining that for us, it was a problem
, ”noted the French president.
Faced with opposition from so-called “
frugal
” countries, such as the Netherlands, he nevertheless conceded that it was first necessary to resort to available funds.
“
Then we will see if we need new money
,” he said.