Joe Biden’s French Foreign Relations Failure
I consider this an external sign of a major foreign relations failure by the Biden administration specifically and the United States generally.
Macron and Xi Jinping met on April 6, 2023.
Macron’s comments indicate France moving away from the United States and toward China.
According to the Epoch Times Macron indicated that: “Europe must better fund its defense industry, develop nuclear and renewable energy, and reduce dependence on the U.S. dollar to limit its reliance on the United States, Macron also said.” https://www.theepochtimes.com/macron-says-europe-should-reduce-dependence-on-us-dollar-after-meeting-with-chinas-xi_5182353.html
“Macron appeared to falter on the diplomatic tightrope when he insisted that Europe should set its own policy on Taiwan to avoid being “followers” of Washington’s “agenda” in the region.” from https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20230411-fallout-from-macron-s-china-visit-ripples-across-atlantic-and-indo-pacific
“Emmanuel Macron has flown into a storm of criticism after he said Europe should not become a “vassal” and must avoid being drawn into any conflict between the US and China over Taiwan.” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/10/emmanuel-macron-sparks-anger-europe-vassal-us-china-clash
“French President Emmanuel Macron drew consternation on both sides of the Atlantic with a recent interview in which he questioned Europe's allegiance to the United States.” https://www.npr.org/2023/04/11/1169194799/china-policy-expert-discusses-pres-macrons-remarks-on-china-europe-and-the-u-s
Why is this important?
(1) France is a member of NATO https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/nato_countries.htm
(2) France’s military is ranked number 9 by globalfirepower.com https://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-listing.php
(3) In 2020, France was the number 3 military weapons exporter according to theglobaleconomy.com https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/rankings/arms_exports/
Here is some video commentary on this from SkyNew.com.au https://www.skynews.com.au/opinion/paul-murray/emmanuel-macron-meets-with-chinas-president-and-thinks-they-should-work-closer-together/video/1436226205bf3b4bf0dcf7cb9314e84d
Unfortunately, according to Breibart, Macron’s comments were more serious than was reported “The POLITICO website has come under criticism for admitting that it redacted French President Emmanuel Macron’s more “frank” statements on the issue of Taiwan after being pressured by the Elysée Palace.” https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2023/04/11/politico-website-kowtowed-to-macrons-demands-to-cut-more-frank-comments-on-china/
The Polish Prime Minister interpreted Macron’s visit the same way as implied by “French President Emmanuel Macron favors “shifting the center of European gravity towards China,” according to Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.” from https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/poland-france-favors-severing-ties-us
To close, it is not just Macron signaling a move away from the United States and towards China but, among others:
Saudi Arabia
Brazil
Indonesia
Vietnam
Malaysia
from https://pjmedia.com/spengler/2023/04/14/the-sino-forming-of-the-global-south-n1687300
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(1945 also made some useful observations on this https://www.19fortyfive.com/2023/04/understanding-macrons-maverick-rhetoric-about-china/ )