Emmanuel Macron has just completed the first major state visit to the US since the pandemic.
As central pillars of Nato and the broader western, democratic alliance, France and the US are historic allies. However, there was a sense of tension ahead of this particular visit, mainly because of concerns that a trade war between the US and Europe could be triggered by president Joe Biden’s protectionist Inflation Reduction Act. This offers subsidies to green industries based in the US, which Macron fears could cause European companies to relocate.
It seems Macron has eked out some concessions from Biden on this issue, who made a verbal commitment at a joint press conference to re-think his planned subsidies. The US president claimed it was never his intention to “exclude” Europe.
