French President Macron: Strategic Autonomy – OpEd

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French president Macron’s stressing the need for “Europe’s Strategic Autonomy” was a result of awakening from the US policies in Europe.It’s been a theme of his for years. Macron has stressed the need for EU to realize that dependence on the US may be problematic for EU’s strategic autonomy after the former’s retreat from Afghanistan and especially now with the Russia-Ukraine crisis.EU member states should avoid becoming vassals and instead strive to make the bloc function as the ‘Third Pole’ alongside the US and China.

At a press conference (11 Jan,2022) The French President Macron’s message was clear, he wanted the informal summit meeting scheduled for March 10-11 in Paris, to be the occasion for a ‘Strategic Discussion about the macroeconomic model and the new governance,’ the “Strategy of construction of the European…model of growth, investment, production, Autonomy.” 

“Europe must reduce its dependency on the United States and avoid getting dragged into a confrontation between China and the US over Taiwan, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview on his plane back from a three-day state visit to China. “The Great Risk” Europe faces is that it “gets caught up in crises that are not ours, which prevents it from building its strategic autonomy.” Macron emphasized his pet theory of “Strategic Autonomy” for Europe. (ABOARD FRANCE’S AIR FORCE ONE)

It must be noted that being the only nuclear power of the EU after Brexit, France’s armed forces are the most heavily engaged and combat-ready of the entire EU gives Macron the steering authority and power to steer the EU’s security and defence policy.From a French perspective, assuring European strategic autonomy, and more fundamentally setting up a system for European collective defence, are long-standing ambitions of President Macron. The return of  Power politics gives France a particularly legitimate voice for the defence of Europe. 

The high-profile three day visits by the French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on April 6 along with 70 industrialists, to China is an indication to have a strategic partnership between Europe and China. The visit was aimed at garnering peace through President Xi an end to the Ukraine-Russia conflict but it was more of trade ties knowing fully well that China playing the role of a Peace Maker will not be allowed to take off by the US-NATO combine! The French President’s endorsement of China’s peace plan, which is aimed at facilitating the end of the year-old Ukraine war, will also not be appreciated by the US. 

Macron’s EU’s Strategic Autonomy Implications

  • Macron taking a firm stand can have far-reaching geopolitical implications as he has urged the European Union (EU) to implement its policy of ‘Strategic Autonomy’ and desist from following the US or China on the Taiwan issue. Macron’s remarks can strain US-Europe ties.
  • EU member states should avoid becoming vassals and instead strive to make the bloc function as the ‘Third Pole’ alongside the US and China. Macron’s remarks can strain US-Europe ties.
  • It’s obvious that Macron wants EU to hold its ground and safeguard its interests rather than getting embroiled in the great power rivalry.
  • The growing diplomatic engagement of France, Germany and other European countries with China indicates that the EU is not keen on toeing the US line.
  • Macron’s appeal to the European defence industry to reduce its dependence on US suppliers will have a bearing on America’s leadership of NATO, whose push for eastward expansion acted as a trigger for the Ukraine war. 

The lesson for the US is that it can’t take Europe’s unstinting support for granted any more. A stronger and more assertive EU augurs well for a much-needed multipolar world order provided Macron and other EU leaders support Macron’s “Europe’s Strategic Autonomy”

The US fears losing its global leadership position of the unipolar hegemonic order. Washington fears to face a different, multipolar order when a growing number of countries are starting to pursue adjustments to the new global order. US leadership is being seen as the failure of its US ‘Neocon Strategy’: which typically advocates the promotion of democracy and interventionism in international affairs, including peace through strength, and are anti-communism and political radicalism. It is the US that has been taking its allies under a tight grip in an attempt to jointly contain China and Russia, launch economic wars, proxy wars and diplomatic coercion.

The Global South does not believe that the West understands their problems. The war in Ukraine is seen by the Global South as mainly about the future of Europe rather than the future of the entire world. The world economy is no longer American dominated or Western led and the Global South does have other options.

John F Kennedy Jr : “The collapse of US influences over Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom’s new alliances with China and Iran are painful emblems of the abject failure of the Neocon strategy of maintaining US global hegemony with aggressive projections of military power. China has displaced the American Empire by deftly projecting, instead, economic power. Over the past decade, our country has spent trillions bombing roads, ports, bridges, and airports. China spent the equivalent building the same across the developing world. The Ukraine war is the final collapse of the Neocon’s short-lived “American Century.” The Neocon projects in Iraq and Ukraine have cost $8.1 trillion, hollowed out our middle class, made a laughingstock of US military power and moral authority, pushed China and Russia into an invincible alliance, destroyed the dollar as the global currency, cost millions of lives and done nothing to advance democracy or win friendships or influence.”                   

Conflict in Trade interests EU:US/China

Europe is now in a deep crisis, as its dependence on the US has increased significantly because of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In terms of energy, European nations rejected Russian gas on behest of the US. This gave the US access to the European energy market. This though helped Europe to cope with the energy emergency, but this further increased dependence which reduced Europe’s strategic energy autonomy, an issue France and Germany had cared about the most. Macron’s actions and earlier of German chancellor Olaf Scholz’s reflect that the limits of the US’ ability to rope in Europe in containing China through advisory to avoid trade with China, and the backlash is happening with  EU leaders visiting China to further enhance their trade ties and Macron wants to drive Europe to be a key player. The Chinese should not think that Macron’s France will “stand with China.” European countries are unlikely to break away from the US as they have strong connections and are bound together by NATO. EU strategic interests will conflict with those of the US. 

All countries want independent development but the US attempts to maintain its era of global hegemony. Whether the US likes it or not, the momentum of calling for a new world order is rising.It’s natural for Americans  to see Macron’s comments as desiring independence from US influence, especially since Europe depends heavily on American security guarantees through NATO and the presence of US bases in Europe.

Countries are focusing more on regional multilateral cooperation. De-dollarization has begun and the move away from the dollar has gained momentum since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The significance of BRICS is rising which is now thinking to trade though respective currencies saying final Good Bye to US dollar!

Reactions to Macron’s Views:

Diplomats and lawmakers in the US and in central and eastern Europe slammed Macron for being soft on Beijing and worryingly critical of the US, especially given that Washington has been a staunch backer of Europe as it deals with the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Analysts found the comments particularly ill-timed with China carrying out large-scale military drills in the straits of Taiwan in response to the Taiwanese president’s visit to the US last week.German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said: “We have never been in danger of becoming or being a vassal of the United States.”Former UK prime minister Liz Truss said it was a mistake and a sign of “weakness” to ask for China’s help in ending the war in Ukraine as she hit out at French president l Macron during a speech focusing on the need to defend western capitalism and freedoms while speaking in the US .

Patial RC

Patial RC is a retired Infantry officer of the Indian Army and possesses unique experience of serving in active CI Ops across the country and in Sri Lanka. Patial RC is a regular writer on military and travel matters in military professional journals. The veteran is a keen mountaineer and a trekker.

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