MOSCOW (Sputnik) — French presidential frontrunner Emmanuel Macron said in an interview Thursday his first official trip would be to Germany to meet Chancellor Angela Merkel if he wins the presidency.
"Maybe not on the same day [of inauguration]. But the chancellor would obviously be the first world leader I would meet," Macron told Le Parisien newspaper.
The centrist criticized the far-right for being aggressive toward Germany and acting on France’s "ancient instincts" of trying to best Germans. His rival Marine Le Pen said in Wednesday’s TV debate that with Macron in charge France would become "subservient" to Germany.
France’s sitting President Francois Hollande arrived in Berlin for his first meeting with Chancellor Merkel on the day he was sworn in on May 15, 2012. He will step down after a successor is chosen in this Sunday’s runoff between Macron and Le Pen.
