Trump Accuses Macron of Pandering to China Following Taiwan Remarks

Former US President Donald Trump has accused French President Emmanuel Macron of pandering to Beijing following the former’s high-profile trip to China. Speaking in an interview with Fox News on April 11, Trump, who adopted a tough stance on China during his administration, stated that, “you’ve got this crazy world that’s blowing up and the United States has absolutely no say. And Macron, who’s a friend of mine, is over with China kissing his [Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s] ass”.

The French president has been criticized for advising the European Union to reduce reliance on the US and avoid opposing China’s aggression towards self-ruled Taiwan, which China’s Communist Party has sought to annex. In a recent French media interview, he stated that, “the question asked of us Europeans is the following: is it in our interest for there to be acceleration on the topic of Taiwan? No. The worst thing we Europeans could do would be to be followers on this topic and to adapt to the American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction”.

However, backlash over Macron’s comments has snowballed in recent days. Dozens of lawmakers from the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), including two from France, have signed a statement expressing alarm. They wrote: “With Beijing ramping up military exercises in the South China Sea, and showing continuing support for Russian aggression in Ukraine, this is the worst possible moment to send a signal of indifference over Taiwan. Monsieur le Président (Mr President), you do not speak for Europe. IPAC will work to ensure that your remarks serve as a wake-up call to democratic governments to do everything possible to ensure that Beijing’s aggressive stance towards Taiwan receives the hostile reception it deserves from the international community”.

After Taiwan’s President, Tsai Ing-wen, met with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California last week, the Chinese regime held a three-day military drill in the Taiwan Strait. Upon concluding the “Joint Sword” exercises on Monday, the Chinese military’s Eastern Theater Command, responsible for contingencies involving Taiwan, stated that its troops “can fight at any time to resolutely smash any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ and foreign interference attempts”.

Taiwan’s parliament speaker, You Si-kun, questioned France’s commitment to freedom after hearing Macron’s remarks. He wrote on Facebook, “Are ‘liberté, égalité, fraternité’ (liberty, equality, fraternity) out of fashion?”