An article published by the American Foreign Policy magazine revealed that the statements of French President Emmanuel Macron regarding the need for Europe not to be subordinate to the United States or China regarding the Taiwan issue, are nothing more than a public expression of what the Europeans think.
The author of the article, Benjamin Haddad, a member of the French Parliament and chair of the Franco-Ukraine Friendship Group in the legislative institution, said that leaders in Washington are called upon to confront the uncomfortable reality that it needs a self-reliant European Union.
After his recent visit to China, Macron confirmed that the great danger for Europe is that it will find itself drawn into crises that are not its own, which will prevent it from building its strategic independence. And he warned that the worst is the belief that the Europeans should become followers in this file, and take their cues from the US agenda and the exaggerated Chinese reaction, as he described it.
A global presence
Haddad explained that some of those who commented on Macron's visit saw in it the dismantling of the Atlantic front in the face of China, and stressed that they must understand that the French president's statements reveal the deeper motives for the visit, represented in the fact that the European Union imprints its presence on global issues, and does not allow its positions to be formed according to To the positions of others, whether it comes to the great ally the United States, or China.
The article indicated that European leaders feel a lot of anxiety about walking in full swing alongside Washington in its open conflict with China, and many of them believe that this confrontation is – sometimes – more linked to the United States' fears of losing its global supremacy, rather than making sound international policies. .
He added that Washington must know that success in confronting Beijing will also be achieved by formulating a unified economic strategy, along with military strategies, and it must also take into account the concerns of its European counterparts, who are also actively seeking to balance economic interests and other priorities.
Makruh is not alone
The writer stated that what confirms this is that Macron's travel to Beijing is not an isolated incident, as it was preceded by the visit of German Chancellor Olaf Schultz, as well as the visit of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, and that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will travel to China next month.
Benjamin Haddad talked about the need for Washington to seek to establish trust with its allies, as many European leaders question the credibility of their American interlocutors, and he gave an example of the story of Washington's pressure on the Europeans to sever relations with China, at a time when it achieved trade exchanges between Beijing and Washington. 690 billion dollars in 2022.
In contrast, the Comprehensive Investment Agreement between Europe and China was postponed after much pressure.
He stressed that Washington, in its quest to compete with Beijing, is in need of a strong and reliable partner, and not a group of "follower allies", explaining that in this way it ensures that the European Union is not exposed to the risk of being affected by external Chinese influence.
