The passing of Jacques Delors, a key figure in European construction and the father of the euro, has prompted an outpouring of tributes from French and European political figures.
Considered one of the main architects of European integration, especially regarding the single currency, the former President of the European Commission passed away on Wednesday. His daughter, Martine Aubry, the Socialist Mayor of Lille, announced that Jacques Delors died peacefully in his sleep at his Parisian home. Following the news, numerous tributes were paid to the former Minister of the Economy under François Mitterrand.
Loss of a “Giant”
Emmanuel Macron praised him as an “inexhaustible craftsman of our Europe,” highlighting his role as a “statesman with a French destiny.” Ursula Von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, went further, describing him as a “visionary” of Europe and urging everyone to honor his legacy. Jacques Delors has “entered history as one of the builders of our Europe,” commented Charles Michel, President of the European Council, calling him a “great Frenchman and a great European.”
“He shaped the destiny of the EU with the power of his convictions and the rigor of his actions. He thus enters the pantheon of the great figures produced by Europe, whose legacy we must assume,” stated the EU’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz referred to him as “an architect of the EU as we know it today.”