Emmanuel Macron warns 'Europe could die'

Emmanuel Macron has warned that 'Europe could die' and said the continent must form closer ties with Brexit Britain and not become 'a vassal of the US' dependent on American military back-up in the wake of Russian aggression.

With just three years left of his second and final term in office, the French president, 46, wants to show his critics that he retains the energy and fresh thinking that helped propel him into the presidency in 2017.

'There is a risk our Europe could die. We are not equipped to face the risks,' Macron said in his speech at the Sorbonne University in Paris, warning that military, economic and other pressures could weaken and fragment the 27-nation EU.

Macron said Russia must not be allowed to win in Ukraine, and he called for a boost in Europe's cybersecurity capacity, closer defence ties with post-Brexit Britain, and the creation of a European academy to train high-ranking military personnel.

Europe 'must show that it is never a vassal of the United States and that it also knows how to talk to all the other regions of the world', he said, urging to adopt a 'credible' defence strategy less dependent on the US.

Macron described Russia's behaviour after its invasion of Ukraine as 'uninhibited' and said it was no longer clear where Moscow's 'limits' lay.

'Our Europe, today, is mortal and it can die. It can die and this depends only on our choices,' Macron said, warning that Europe was 'not armed against the risks we face' in a world where the 'rules of the game have changed'.

'Over the next decade... the risk is immense of (Europe) being weakened or even relegated,' he added, also pointing to the risk of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon.

'There is no defence without a defence industry ... we've had decades of under-investment,' he said, adding that Europeans should give preference to buying European military equipment.