Expected Wednesday in China, Emmanuel Macron (here, at the beginning of March in Angola) intends to “reconnect” with Beijing after three years of parenthesis in relations because of the covid. LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP
DECRYPTION – Expected in China for an official visit from April 5 to 8, the head of state hopes to influence Xi Jinping’s position on Russia and the war in Ukraine.
The European awakening vis-à-vis China is recent and still fragile. As is that of France. It was at a time of great international tension that Emmanuel Macron traveled to China, in the hope of being able to influence Xi Jinping’s Russian policy and obtain contracts for French companies. While the competition between China and the United States threatens to turn into confrontation in the years to come, France aims to bring a voice other than that of Washington in its relationship with Beijing. “We don’t have the same positions as the United States vis-à-vis China, because we don’t have the same interests”, summarizes the Elysée. Paris does not want to be swept away by the whirlwind that is shaping up in the Indo-Pacific and wants “reconnect” with China after three years of parenthesis in relations because of the Covid.
Emmanuel Macron asked Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, to accompany him to Beijing, thus confirming…
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