Europe must save multilateralism, says Macron as US quits Iran deal

GERMANY: Europe is now the guarantor of the multilateral order, France's President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday, a day after his US counterpart Donald Trump ditched the landmark Iran nuclear deal.

"We stand today at a historic moment for Europe -- Europe is in charge of guaranteeing the multilateral order that we created at the end of World War II and which today is sometimes being shaken," Macron told German broadcasters, in remarks released by the French presidency.

Trump's decision to quit the Iran accord left European allies scrambling to save the hard-fought deal, and marks a new blow to multilateralism.

Washington's move to exit the UN climate accord last year, as well as Trump's threat this year to impose punitive tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from countries including allies, had already sparked fears of damage to the long-standing order of cooperation.