From Taiwan to Tibet, French President Emmanuel Macron has touched Beijing’s nerves on a range of sensitive issues over the past few weeks.
On a trip to Japan earlier this month, he and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi “emphasised the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and urged a peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues through constructive dialogue”.
The irritation for Beijing was less about the language and more about the timing, with the joint statement coming less than six months after Takaichi’s controversial comments in November about possible Japanese military intervention in a Taiwan contingency.
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In an interview with Japanese public broadcaster NHK on April 1, Macron also said that “we do not want to be under the hegemony of China or the United States of America”, though he added that Paris should “create a mutually beneficial situation” with Beijing.
At Yonsei University in Seoul two days later, Macron referred to Beijing and Washington, saying: “Our objective is not to be the vassals of two hegemonic powers.”
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Macron also briefly spoke with the Dalai Lama’s representative to the EU, Genkhang Rigzin Choedon, at a cultural event in Paris in late March, expressing his “high esteem” for the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, Genkhang wrote on social media.