A new world order is emerging

With Brexit entering a critical phase, the arrival of French President Emmanuel Macron in Britain should give British Prime Minister Theresa May a golden opportunity to begin work on building the new set of alliances that Britain will need for life beyond the European Union (EU).

Immigration issues are certain to dominate the agenda, as Macron seeks to resolve the disruption caused by hundreds of illegal migrants who have once again gathered in the Pas-de-Calais. The French president has caused a degree of consternation in some circles with his suggestion that Britain should do more to resolve the seemingly perennial Calais issue by agreeing to take more migrants, as well as contributing more to the costs of cross-border security enshrined in the Le Touquet accords. Such demands may appear presumptuous to committed Brexiteers, who take umbrage at the prospect of any foreign power telling the British government how to do its job. Yet, from a different perspective, there is much I commend in Macron’s uncompromising approach.

Macron has drawn bitter criticism from opponents in France, but his policy is more akin to Britain’s own reservations about uncontrolled migration, which proved so decisive in the Brexit vote. So, rather than getting involved in a petty squabble about who pays for what in terms of managing the border, May should adopt a statesmanlike approach to the issue, one that builds on the close defence and security arrangements that already exist between the two countries, thereby establishing the framework for a new era of Anglo-French cooperation post-Brexit. Such an approach would certainly make sense in the current global climate, where we are witnessing a radical and complex re-alignment of national interests.

— The Telegraph Group Limited, London, 2017

Con Coughlin is the Daily Telegraph’s defence editor and chief foreign affairs columnist.