The year of 2017 is seen by the international expert community as the year of crucial changes determining the long-term fate of the entire European Union. Apparently, the forthcoming elections in Germany and France are going to be the key political events determining this fate, Market Leader reports.
Stratfor decided to investigate into the matter as well. The local experts believe that the forthcoming elections in Germany and France are indeed going to be very important for the EU. The thing is, these are the two strongest and most influential economies in the European Union, which is why everything related to them is very important for the rest of the EU.
As for the presidential election in France, the experts are really afraid of the scenario in which Marine Le Pen wins and becomes the next President of France. If that’s really the case, the say this is going to be the end of the European Union as we know it. They say this is also crucial for the fate of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in the east of Ukraine. Since Marine Le Pen visited Russia and met with Vladimir Putin a couple of days ago, she is clearly advocating the idea of tighter cooperation and friendlier relations between Russia and France, which is a nightmare for the existing political forces in the EU in general and France in particular. If the presidential elections in France and Germany allow the opposing forces to come to power, the experts are afraid that this may lead to a less united Europe, with national interests prevailing over the European ones. If so, this is expected to put an end to the European integration.
While the chances of such a scenario in Germany are low, the experts see the results of the presidential election in France as the key challenge to the European integrity. If Marine Le pen wins the election, Russia will get a chance to split the EU and weaken the union while strengthening its position in Europe. The experts say that Russia hopes for disintegrating the EU and make it cancel the sanctions.
