French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting Beijing in a bid to improve economic cooperation with the Chinese communist regime—and to seek China’s help in de-escalating the Russia–Ukraine war.
Observers have pointed out that Macron’s pursuit of cooperation with the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is somewhat idealistic. He has consistently attempted to take the “third way”—which tends to differ from the path of the United States. In the context of the increasingly acrimonious U.S.–China relationship, however, the feasibility of this practice is continuing to decline.
A statement issued by the Xinhua News Agency—the CCP’s official mouthpiece—on the meeting between Macron and CCP leader Xi Jinping was comparatively short, at a little more than 300 words. It cited Xi as saying that “the international situation is complicated,“ that China and France enjoy ”high-quality strategic communication,“ and that the two countries are both promoters of ”the democratization of international relations.”
However, Russia immediately ruled out the possibility of the CCP mediating an end to the war in Ukraine.
However, “some politicians in the European Union countries are indeed idealistic and hope that the CCP can become a responsible stakeholder, playing a so-called mediating role,” Sun Guoxiang, associate professor at the Department of International Affairs and Entrepreneurship at Nanhua University in Taiwan, told The Epoch Times on April 6.
Feng Chongyi, a professor at the University of Technology Sydney and an expert on China issues, told The Epoch Times on April 6 that Xi and Putin won’t listen to Macron but “will act according to the political logic of the dictators they are.”
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen flew to Beijing with Macron. Following the meeting between Xi and Macron, von der Leyen joined the dialogue, which focused on the de-escalation of the Russia–Ukraine war.
No ‘Third Way’
“Because the geopolitical competition between the United States and China is increasing by the day and it’s getting harder for Europe to play the role of an independent player,” the EU’s and Macron’s attempt to forge a ”third way” will be incredibly difficult, Sun told The Epoch Times.Feng said France is playing the leading role for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Europe and, therefore, has always attempted to counterbalance the influence of the United States. In 2018, Macron even suggested that European NATO forces couldn’t rely on the United States for security.
“Macron has always wanted to maintain a certain distance from the United States and to highlight France’s status. So he is going to Beijing to continue in the same vein,” he said.
Sun believes that the current situation is unlike the Cold War period, in which global markets could be separated almost completely. He said Macron’s trip is also meant to engage in deeper economic exchanges with China.
“However, the CCP also uses the economy and the market to divide Europe from the United States and to divide the relationship between the old EU member states and the new EU member states in Europe through economic enticements, such as building infrastructure, etc.,” he said.
“So the CCP’s strategy is very clear, and it will continue to divide other international institutions.
“Because of China’s divide-and-conquer strategy, the EU needs to show even more that it has a unified voice to deal with China’s actions.”
