Macron's key statements at the end of the European Council

Emmanuel Macron wished Friday, at the end of the European Council, that the date of October 31 for Brexit be respected and announced a meeting "in the next weeksWith Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the presence of Boris Johnson and Angela Merkel.

Here are the main statements of the French head of state after two days of sometimes stormy discussions between the Twenty-eight in Brussels:

• Macron does not want to "new deadlines "

In the wake of a new agreement on Brexit and on the eve of a crucial vote in the House of Commons, Emmanuel Macron hoped that the date of 31 October, initially set for the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU, is "respected". "I do not do politics fiction, I will not put myself in a case where the British Parliament would vote this or that but I do not think that a new deadline must be granted. We need to finish these negotiations, move on to the negotiation of the future relationship and be able to finish", did he declare.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson "is sometimes picturesque but we are sometimes all in this condition. He has his temperament, but he is a leader who has a real strategic thinking. Those who did not take it seriously were wrong", he added.

• Diplomacy by a tweet

Emmanuel Macron revealed to have discovered last week "by a tweetDonald Trump the withdrawal of US troops from northeastern Syria before the outbreak of Turkey's offensive against the Kurds.

"I discovered by tweet that the United States of America decided to withdraw their troops and to liberate the zone, like everybodyThe French president told reporters after a European summit in Brussels.

• «Heavy mistake of NATO In Syria

On the Turkish military offensive in Syria against the Kurdish allies of the coalition against Daesh, Emmanuel Macron said he had decided with Boris Johnson and German Chancellor Angela Merkel to meet "in the next weeksTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, "probably in London". "I consider that what has been happening for several days is a heavy mistake of the West and NATO in the region and it weakens our credibility to find partners on the ground who will fight with us thinking that they are protected for a long time, and that also questions how NATO worksHe said.

"It is important to meet and coordinate between the three Europeans and Turkey"He added. "We must try to see where Turkey wants to go and how to bring it back to more reasonable positions that can articulate its internal security with the respect of our agendas and the fair solidarity that there is within NATO".

• European budget

On the question of the post-Brexit European budget for the period 2021-2027,force is to note that the consensus was not foundBetween the Twenty-Seven, said the head of the French state. "It's normal, it was the first discussion where we went back a little in detail".

"We therefore hoped that the future President of the European Council Charles Michel could continue the discussions and carry them out to have a budget that can be decided as soon as possibleHe added, stressing the importance for France of the budget of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

• Expansion of the block

In the heat of criticism from his partners who speak of a fault "historicalEmmanuel Macron defended the position of France, which opposed, with Denmark and the Netherlands, the opening of negotiations for the accession of Albania and Northern Macedonia to the European Union. . "We must keep the spirit of seriousness and measurement", he said. "Several countries were reluctant to open negotiations today, France was part of these countries (…) all the progress requested are not there".

"Before any effective enlargement, let us know how to reform ourselves", he added. "The nature of the enlargement process does not seem to me to be appropriate anymore, it is too bureaucratic and it does not speak to people anymore.".