Macron stands by China interview – French diplomat

PARIS (Reuters) -French President Emmanuel Macron is not backtracking on comments in China urging the European Union to reduce dependency on the United States, a senior diplomat said on Wednesday.

In an interview with news outlet Politico and daily Les Echos, Macron also cautioned against being drawn into a crisis over Taiwan driven by an “American rhythm and a Chinese overreaction.”

That brought criticism from some politicians and commentators in Europe and the United States, with former U.S. President Donald Trump accusing him of “kissing ass” to Beijing.

The French diplomat, who requested anonymity, told reporters that the substance of what Macron said, which focused on his pet project of European strategic autonomy, was clear, and his position on Taiwan and China has not changed.

“This is something the president stands by entirely,” he said of the interview.

However, the Politico headline “Europe must resist pressure to become ‘America’s followers'” was “sensationalist” and did not reflect nuances of Macron’s views, the diplomat added.

Evidencing that France stuck to a robust defence of international law, the diplomat said, a French military ship recently sailed through the Taiwan Strait despite Chinese military exercises around the island.

China has never renounced the use of force to bring the democratically governed island under its control.

“France respects the One China principle and the president told (Chinese President Xi Jinping) that the Taiwan question should only be resolved pacifically,” the French diplomat added.

Macron and U.S. President Joe Biden agree on Taiwan but the French leader thought the meeting between Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen and U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California last week – prior to China’s drills – was a “provocation”, the diplomat said.

The Republican leadership of the U.S. Congress “uses Taiwan to pressure China,” he added. “No, Europe will not get dragged into that, but that doesn’t mean Europe will disengage (from the Taiwan issue).”

(Reporting by Michel Rose;Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)