Macron: “Europe must not be a follower of America or China” | Abroad

China views democratic Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to one day seize it by force or otherwise. Last week, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met with US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California. Infuriated, Beijing immediately conducted military exercises around the island.

“The worst thing is that we Europeans are followers and have to adjust to the American rhythm or Chinese overreaction,” Macron said on Friday, returning from a three-day state visit to China. He stressed the importance of “strategic autonomy” from the EU: “Whether it’s Ukraine, relations with China, sanctions, we have a European strategy.” And: “We don’t want to get into block-to-block logic.”

Europe’s emergence as an independent actor has been Macron’s goal for years, exemplified by French President Charles de Gaulle (1959–1969), who saw France as a balancing force between the two superpowers of his time, the United States and the United States. America. Soviet Union.

see China conducts “total encirclement drills” around Taiwan: “accurate attack simulations”