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US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by telephone on Thursday, ten days after the latter’s decried comments on the crisis in Taiwan. In its press release reporting on the conversation, the Élysée made no direct mention of the subject, while the White House reported that the two leaders “reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Strait of Taiwan”.
Immanuel Macron spoke on Thursday, April 20, by telephone, with US President Joe Biden, reported the Elysée and the White House, whose separate press releases differ about Taiwan, ten days after comments by the French president decried by his Western allies.
In interview published by Politico and Les Echos, Emmanuel Macron said that Europe has no interest in an acceleration of the crisis around Taiwan and must pursue a strategy of strategic autonomy from the United States and China to become a “third pole”.
These remarks were made at the end of a visit to China initially intended to show the unity of the European Union vis-a-vis Beijing, the president of the European executive, Ursula von der Leyen, having accompanied Emmanuel Macron, but who ultimately illustrated the differences within the EU and pissed off Washington.
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Reporting on the interview between Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden, the Élysée made no direct mention of Taiwan in its press release, simply stating that France and the United States were both eager to “support international law, the freedom of navigation, in the Indo-Pacific region”.
The White House statement contrasts with that of the French presidency, reporting that the two leaders “reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait”.
Angry Westerners
While most of the comments made earlier this month by Emmanuel Macron were not new, the fact that they came as China conducted military exercises around Taiwan and the tone adopted by the French president annoyed many. Eastern European countries.
Many governments on the EU’s eastern flank are very attached to their ties with the United States, even more so with the essential role played by Washington in helping Ukraine since the beginning of the offensive launched last year by the Russia.
Westerners were also angered by the absence of calls for maintaining the status quo in the region during Emmanuel Macron’s visit to China, which considers Taiwan a renegade province and does not rule out the use of force to bring her back to her bosom.
If French diplomats have tried to minimize Emmanuel Macron’s remarks and limit the damage, the fact that the Élysée does not explicitly mention Taiwan in the press release published Thursday is likely to cause new waves.
The French presidency indicated that Emmanuel Macron presented Joe Biden with the “results obtained” during his trip to China, without giving further details. In its press release, unlike that of the White House, the Elysée also declared that China had a role to play in contributing in the medium term to the end of the Ukrainian conflict.
With Reuters
