Emmanuel Macron.

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STEPHANE MAHE / POOL / AFP

Not sure everyone likes the metaphor.

On the vaccination campaign against Covid-19, Europe "is a bit of a diesel" which "starts slowly" but "goes far," said French President Emmanuel Macron in an interview with Nikos Aliagas, broadcast on Wednesday by a Greek television.

“We are catching up.

We're a bit of a diesel.

We can no longer talk too much in these days about these engines, but it starts slowly and it goes a long way, ”declared the Head of State, interviewed for the ERT channel on the occasion of the bicentenary of Greek independence. .

2.5 billion doses ordered by the EU

The European Union “has ordered 2.5 billion doses, so plenty to do for us, for solidarity, to plan for the future.

By the second half of the year, we will be the space that will produce the most vaccines in the world, ”he adds, questioned by the popular Franco-Greek host in the Elysée village hall.

Asked about the sluggish start of the vaccination campaign, Emmanuel Macron admits not having "thought it would go so quickly".

“The Americans had a merit in the summer of 2020, they said: 'let's go all out and let's go”.

And so they have more (vaccines).

They had more ambition than us.

And whatever it costs that we applied for the accompanying measures, they applied it for vaccines and research ”, according to him.

"We were wrong to lack ambition, I was going to say madness"

“We weren't quick enough, not strong enough on this.

This is absolutely true and we thought that the vaccine would take time to take off (…) And so, we probably dreamed less of the stars than some others.

And I think that must be a lesson for ourselves.

We were wrong to lack ambition, I was going to say madness, to say: "it is possible and we are going".

We are perhaps too rational, ”he believes.

Emmanuel Macron also defends the importance of "having a real European vaccination" and "clear rules so that within the European area we can reopen" by the summer with the establishment of a health certificate, currently under discussion at EU level.

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