“We should work on a vision of one day establishing a real, true European army,” Merkel told MEPs during her speech, drawing applause – and booing – in the Parliament. In her speech, Chancellor Merkel didn’t elaborate on how this could be materialized, however, she backed the forming of a European rapid reaction force and a common arms acquisition policy. By saying so, Merkel chose a side in the dispute between Macron and Trump, who criticized the French idea of a European army as “very offensive” to the United States and threatening to apply additional taxes on imports of French wine to the U.S. Last week Macron put the issue of the European army on the table and rectified saying that he referred to winning in strategic autonomy. To this issue, Mr. Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, said: “More European efforts on defence are great but it should never undermine the strength of the transatlantic bond”.