But it's certainly a bit of a cope out to for Arianespace, while sovereignty is definitely becoming an issue, reading the article, it's pretty clear that they are pushing that PR angle a bit too hard. That allows them to shove aside the many many fumblings around reusability that happened in the previous years. They do have a new CEO since January, though.

I think you're underestimating the urgency with which Western nations are trying to reduce their dependency on the US, who have over-night become isolationist and frankly hostile to other Western democracies.