{"id":1427820,"date":"2023-09-17T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-17T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/?p=1427820"},"modified":"2023-09-17T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-09-17T15:00:00","slug":"macron-is-not-wrong-about-china-the-u-s-should-worry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/macron-is-not-wrong-about-china-the-u-s-should-worry\/1427820\/","title":{"rendered":"Macron Is Not Wrong About China, The U.S. Should Worry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Macron Is Not Wrong About China, The U.S. Should Worry<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Authored by Juan P. Villasmil via RealClear Wire<\/a>,<\/em><\/p>\n

Not so long ago, following French President Emmanuel Macron\u2019s\u00a0Beijing visit<\/a>, many in the U.S. reacted to his expressed desire to avoid confrontation with China with indignation<\/strong>, labeling the leader a\u00a0fool<\/a>\u00a0and a\u00a0puppet<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Evidently, the backlash didn\u2019t phase Macron. He\u00a0doubled-down<\/a>, saying that \u201cbeing an ally does not mean being a vassal\u2026 [or] mean that we don’t have the right to think for ourselves.\u201d When it comes to responding to fluctuating China-U.S. tensions, Macron believes that for Europe no response is the best response.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And as much as some Americans might wish he was wrong, he is not.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Macron is not witless. He is making a case that prioritizes his country\u2019s tangible interests, not the U.S.\u2019s. These include focusing on his region, avoiding conflict with a major global power, and remaining a relevant actor in world affairs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Critics like\u00a0The Spectator World\u2019s John Pietro may\u00a0label<\/a>\u00a0Macron\u2019s call for European\u00a0strategic autonomy\u00a0\u201cfantastical\u201d and \u201cunpopular,\u201d but reality is not on their side.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

In fact, Macron\u2019s view is very popular.\u00a0According to<\/a>\u00a0the European Council on Foreign Relations, close to three-quarters of Europeans believe that the Continent should pursue increased independence vis-\u00e0-vis American military power. <\/strong>Additionally, the report shows that majorities in all surveyed countries believe that Europe should remain neutral in any conflict between China and the U.S. over Taiwan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, has repeatedly advocated for strategic autonomy too, as he publicly\u00a0emphasizes<\/a>\u00a0his desire to strengthen relations between China and the EU.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Three years ago, for instance, Borrell\u00a0made the case\u00a0<\/a>for the framework exalted by Macron.<\/strong> \u201c[T]he world has changed. It is difficult to claim to be a \u2018political union\u2019 able to act as a \u2018global player\u2019 [\u2026] without being \u2018autonomous,\u2019\u201d Borrell explains. \u201c[T]he weight of Europe in the world is shrinking,\u201d he acknowledges, claiming that \u201c[t]he next two decades are going to be crucial because China will use them to become the first global power.\u201d With this in mind, the EU official concludes that \u201ctraditional alliances remain essential\u201d but insufficient, and relations between countries will become \u201cmore transactional\u201d as the power balance shifts.<\/p>\n

Borrell looks at the changing world, and sees an opportunity to build a relationship with a powerful China, just like Macron does. For him, as for most Europeans, Russia poses a far more perilous threat than China.<\/strong> Much to some American neoconservatives\u2019 disappointment, he sees no value in taking strong stances against China.<\/p>\n

If the U.S. were to publicly and strongly reject Europe\u2019s openness to China, Borrell may reconsider. But that has not happened. Hence, with precaution and measured language, Borrell and Europe writ large will likely continue to dance with both China and the U.S.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With eyes on Russia, it may seem like Europe and the U.S. have a phenomenal bond. When it comes to China though, that bond is not quite clear. So, while Americans\u2019 gut reaction to Macron\u2019s philosophy might be indignation, still, the U.S. must take Macron\u2019s signals and framework seriously. Pretending he\u2019s a lunatic simply won\u2019t cut it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Juan P. Villasmil is a foreign policy specialist. His work has been featured on The Wilson Center\u2019s New Security Beat, The National Interest, RealClearWorld, and others. He is also a Young Voices contributor.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nSun, 09\/17\/2023 – 07:00<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200bhttps:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/geopolitical\/macron-not-wrong-about-china-us-should-worry<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Macron Is Not Wrong About China, The U.S. Should Worry Authored by Juan P. Villasmil via RealClear Wire, Not so long ago, following French President…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1427820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1427820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1427820"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1427820\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1427820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1427820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1427820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}