France must stay close to the UK after Brexit as we are ‘the most important’ military player in Europe, leaked Macron campaign emails reveal
Correspondence from President Macron’s campaign has been published on Wikileaks
FRANCE must stay close to the UK after Brexit as we are “the most important” military player in Europe, leaked emails from President Macron’s campaign show.
A good relationship with the UK is a “key priority” for the senior advisers to the new French Premier, according to emails published by Wikileaks.
The Brexit-boost came amid 21,000 emails from Mr Macron’s victorious campaign that were published by the controversial transparency site run by Julian Assange.
The candid discussions between Mr Macron’s top advisers give Britain’s negotiating team an intimate insight into what the French Government is really thinking and hoping to achieve from divorce talks.
More than 790 of the emails - which Wikileaks deny were hacked by Russia - mention Britain’s EU departure.
In one conversation key aides Francois Heisbourg and Clement Beaune admit that the EU’s defence plans are “overly ambitious”.
They add that France “could be tempted” to dump the EU plan in favour of one-on-one relations with the UK.
And one of the president’s most senior advisers, Hervé Grandjean admitted Brits “despite their present obvious withdrawal - remain the most important and the most active country in the field of defence.”
He added that both France and Britain “have insisted on the preservation and strengthening of the bilateral partnership.”
Mr Macron’s team were victims of a hacking attack just days before his victory over far-right Marine Le Pen.
French cyber-security chiefs have said there is no evidence of Russian interference.