Emmanuel Macron spoke Thursday, April 20 by phone with US President Joe Biden, reported the Elysee and the White House, whose separate statements differ about Taiwan, ten days after comments by the French president decried by his Western allies.
In an interview published by Politico and Les Échos, Emmanuel Macron said that Europe had no interest in accelerating 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 against Beijing, the president of the European executive Ursula von der Leyen having accompanied Emmanuel Macron, but which ultimately illustrated the differences within the EU and angered Washington.
Reporting on the meeting between Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden, the Elysee made no direct mention of Taiwan in its statement, simply stating that France and the United States were both eager to "support international law, including 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."
Irritation
While most of Macron's comments earlier this month were not unprecedented, the fact that they came as China was conducting military exercises around Taiwan and the tone adopted by the French president annoyed several Eastern European countries.
Many governments on the EU's eastern flank are very attached to their ties with the US, even more so with Washington's pivotal role in helping Ukraine since the start of Russia's offensive last year.
Westerners were also irritated by the lack of call 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 using force to bring it back into its fold.
If French diplomats have tried to minimize Emmanuel Macron's remarks and limit the damage, the fact that the Elysee does not explicitly mention Taiwan in the statement issued Thursday is likely to provoke new waves.
The French presidency said Macron presented to Joe Biden the "results obtained" during his trip to China, without giving further details. In its statement, unlike that of the White House, the Elysee also said that China had a role to play in contributing in the medium term to the end of the Ukrainian conflict.
With Reuters
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