LThe trap has closed. Emmanuel Macron had however been warned by experts and even the faithful: his visit to China would inevitably hit a meeting in Los Angeles between Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and the leader of the American Republicans, Kevin McCarthy. Beijing responded with worrying maneuvers of encirclement and simulated bombardment of the island in the China Sea.
After having carefully avoided the Taiwan file during his visit to Beijing, the President of the Republic tried to explain himself in interviews with journalists from the echoes, France Inter and the Politico website. His remarks aroused the indignation of European and American specialists on China and Taiwan. The editorial board of Wall Street Journal replied on Monday by accusing the French president of lacking solidarity with his allies: “It weakens deterrence against Chinese aggression and undermines American support for Europe”, stormed the editorialists of the American conservative daily.
READ ALSOTaiwan: Macron refuses that the EU is “following” the United States or ChinaAngled on Taiwan, the Politico article particularly caught the eye when it seemed to portray a French head of state washing his hands of the risk of a Chinese invasion, dismissing threats from China and actions of support from the United States back to back. According to Politico, Emmanuel Macron seemed more relieved that the Chinese maneuvers only began after his departure than worried about the risks to regional stability. “According to Emmanuel Macron’s entourage, he was satisfied to see Beijing at least wait for him to leave Chinese airspace before launching the simulated attack to encircle Taiwan”, specified the specialized site. in international relations, having been able to interview the president on the return plane.
A note at the end of the text also specified that quotations on Taiwan, however pronounced by the president, had to be removed, at the request of the press service of the Élysée. Those preserved were enough to trigger controversy: “The paradox would be that […] we were starting to follow American policy, by a kind of panic reflex, ”said Emmanuel Macron. “The question that is put to us, Europeans, is the following […] : “Do we have an interest in speeding up the subject of Taiwan?” No. The worst thing would be to think that we Europeans should follow suit on this subject and adapt to the American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction. »
The French president further justified his refusal to warn Xi Jinping: “The Europeans are unable to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, how can we credibly say about Taiwan: be careful, if you do something wrong, we will be there ? If you really want to increase tensions, this is the best way to do it,” he said.
Scathing reactions
In response, the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, Ipac), a collective of European and international elected officials who warn of Beijing’s expansionist ambitions, issued a scathing press releasesigned by dozens of parliamentarians who said they were “dismayed”, “in particular its assertion that Europe should avoid being ‘caught up in conflicts that are not ours’ – a clear reference to the escalation of tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
Before pointing out the awkwardness of presidential statements at the very time of Chinese military operations threatening the Indo-Pacific with a devastating conflict: “As Beijing intensifies military exercises in the South China Sea and shows its continued support for the Russian aggression in Ukraine is the worst possible time to send a signal of indifference towards Taiwan. President Macron’s misguided remarks not only disregard Taiwan’s vital place in the global economy, but undermine the international community’s decades-long commitment to maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait. History is a harsh judge of past efforts to appease authoritarians. »
The text is even signed by French parliamentarians, such as Senator André Gattolin, yet a member of the presidential majority. “He is not in the process of reuniting Europe”, deplores the elected Renaissance, at the forefront of China. The president’s statements also raise questions not only because of the controversy aroused among France’s allies in Europe and the United States, but even with regard to French diplomacy. In August 2022, France had indeed signed a G7 appeal to preserve peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait after Chinese military maneuvers simulating a blockade. And timidly, the French presidency had for the first time risked broaching the subject around the G20 in Bali, insisting on stability in the Indo-Pacific.
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However, prior to the meeting with Xi Jinping, Emmanuel Macron had entrusted the Monde not wanting to broach the subject with Xi Jinping: “I am neither Taiwan nor the United States of America. As a good Stoic, I can only take care of what depends on me,” he said, recalling that “we must not mix everything up. Before doing an about-face and discussing the issue at length during his discussions with Xi in Canton.
“It’s incomprehensible”, regrets for her part the deputy of the majority Anne Genetet, who was on the trip. “I receive messages from French people living in the region who support the president but now say to themselves: “We are all alone.” “She understands the line that the executive seeks to define:” He very much wants to be part of this Gaullian tradition, not subservient to the United States”, she deciphers. But she regrets that the desire to distinguish itself from Washington seems to put Paris equidistant from China and the United States: “There is a nuance between subservient, vassalized or not aligned. »
Bad time
Antoine Bondaz, researcher at the Foundation for Strategic Research, had met Emmanuel Macron in mid-March with other experts and pointed out the risk of the Taiwanese file before the visit to China. “He just says what he thinks,” comments the China specialist. “His analysis is totally wrong. If there is one country where there is no debate as to whether to follow the United States, it is France. No one is saying follow Washington. Everyone in France wants an independent policy. And no one denies that the Americans sometimes instrumentalize Taiwan. But the United States does not want to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, on the contrary it wants to maintain it. It is China that is increasing the military operations that are changing the status quo. »
Finally, it is above all the moment at which these declarations are finally pronounced which poses a problem for the image of France with the allies in Europe and the United States, in particular when the war in Ukraine has strengthened the support of the Eastern Europe to NATO and that the rapprochement between Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin arouses greater distrust of China. “The timing and the context are catastrophic, reacts Antoine Bondaz. He comes back from Beijing, has never criticized China and he shoots at the United States. Everything accredits the doubts of some who fear that France is equidistant. Even though it is not France’s foreign policy, as shown by the G7 declaration of August 2022. He sits on what his own country has signed. »
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