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France 24
France 24
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François PICARD

Not just Ukraine: How does Europe prevent bloodshed at its doorstep?

THE DEBATE © FRANCE 24

Europe has issues at its doorstep and Ukraine is only one of them. Azerbaijan overran Nagorno-Karabakh after promising not to invade during the European Union's embryonic mediation effort. Not only was that promise broken, but the winner is refusing a meeting with the loser.

Both Azerbaijan's President Ilan Aliyev and his Turkish ally Recep Tayyip Erdogan refused the invite to Granada, Spain for what has been a brainchild of France's president: a summit of the European political community - essentially the EU and friends. We ask about the South Caucasus and the Balkans with the leaders of Serbia and Albania sending junior delegations to the summit in Granada in the wake of another spike in tensions on the EU’s doorstep.

As the winds of isolationism sweep anew over Washington, what's left of Emmanuel Macron's pitch for strategic autonomy so Europe can ensure security in its own neighbourhood without over-reliance on the US? At least the French president and the German chancellor are both there. The pair has historically been the motor for EU reform but right now, the couple seems to have flatlined. Why? How badly do fellow Europeans want to rekindle the chemistry between Berlin and Paris?

Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Juliette Laurain and Imen Mellaz.

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