Macron calls for Europe and Asia to unite and resist ‘spheres of coercion'

Japan Times

30-05-2025

French President Emmanuel Macron used a keynote speech Friday at Asia's top regional security conference to call on European and Indo-Pacific nations to pursue "strategic autonomy" — avoiding picking sides between China and the United States — and instead forge 'coalitions of action' while standing up to 'spheres of coercion.'
'Our shared responsibility is to ensure with others that our countries are not collateral victims of the imbalances linked to the choices made by the superpowers,' Macron said in a keynote speech to kick off this year's Shangri-la Dialogue in Singapore.
Speaking before hundreds of delegates from 47 countries and regions, including the U.S. and Japanese defense chiefs, the French leader urged Europe and Asia to 'build a positive new alliance ... based on our common norms, on our common principles.'
The remarks by Macron, who is on the final leg on a three-nation Southeast Asian tour that has also taken him to Vietnam and Indonesia, come as European powers have been ramping up their presence in the Indo-Pacific, engaging in a flurry of bilateral and multilateral military activities and inking cooperation and defense-industrial tie-ups with 'like-minded' partners amid concerns that a crisis similar to the war in Ukraine could erupt in Asia.
'The time for nonalignment has undoubtedly passed, but the time for coalitions of action has come and requires that countries capable of acting together give themselves every means to do so,' the 47-year-old Macron said, urging Asians and Europeans to 'show consistency where others practice a double game.'
In an apparent jab at the U.S. and China, Macron pressed for building new coalitions focused on issues such as trade, defense, supply chains, the environment as well as to 'stabilize' an open and rules-based order where sovereignty is respected, borders are inviolable and force cannot be used as a means of domination.
'We must cultivate the spirit of independence and the desire for cooperation,' he said, expressing his hopes of deepening engagement with India, Southeast Asian countries and the 12 nations involved in the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement.
Asked about whether he would be willing to intervene in an Asian conflict, the French president said he would be very cautious, emphasizing that France is not interested in replacing others as a security guarantor, an apparent reference to the U.S.
'We will never sell what we cannot deliver,' he said, highlighting the importance of maintaining credibility.
'If both the United States of America and the Europeans are unable to fix, in the short run, the Ukrainian situation, I think the credibility of both the U.S. and the Europeans to pretend to fix any crisis in these (Asian) regions will be very low,' he said.
The role of Europe, he said, is to work on improving its own strategic autonomy, meaning the capacity to defend itself.
'Through cooperation, we have to help the Asian countries to do the same for themselves and to reduce on both sides our dependencies,' he added, while offering financial and military assistance.
At the same time, Macron emphasized that his country was not seeking confrontation.
"I will be clear, France is a friend and an ally of the United States, and is a friend, and we do cooperate — even if sometimes we disagree and compete — with China."
Still, Macron — who is known to have opposed the opening of a NATO liaison office in Japan — delivered a stark warning to Beijing.
'I had objected to NATO having any role in Asia. ... But what's happening with North Korea being present alongside Russia on European soil is a big question for all of us.' he said.
'This is why, if China doesn't want NATO to be involved in Southeast Asia or in Asia, they should prevent the DPRK from being engaged on European soil,' he warned, using the acronym for North Korea's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The French leader also decried what he referred to as 'double standards' by the world's superpowers, saying that the principles of territorial integrity that apply to Ukraine should also apply to other parts of the world such as Taiwan, the Philippines and the Gaza Strip.
Referring to the latter, Macron, who has repeatedly supported both a ceasefire and the recognition of a Palestinian state, said Europe would 'kill our own credibility' with the rest of the world should it grant a 'free pass' to Israel over its deadly actions in the Gaza Strip.
This is why it's so important to be consistent and follow rules and principles, he said, arguing that what is at stake is 'our credibility to protect this global order.'
And in an apparent jab at U.S. President Donald Trump, Macron said he would defend his approach to strategic autonomy for Europe and the Indo-Pacific despite any pressure from outside powers.
'This means we want to cooperate, but we don't want to depend. We want to cooperate, but we don't want to be instructed on a daily basis what is allowed, what is not allowed and how our life will change because of the decision of a single person,' he added.
'Macron is the first European head of state to be invited to deliver the keynote speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue — a recognition of France's enduring commitment to regional stability,' said Celine Pajon, of the French Institute of International Relations.
France was the first European country to adopt an Indo-Pacific strategy and actively encouraged its neighbors, such as Germany and the Netherlands, to follow suit, while playing a pivotal role in shaping the European Union's own regional strategy.
France's engagement in the Indo-Pacific is driven by two key motivations, according to Pajon.
First, it seeks to protect its national interests in an increasingly unstable security environment. Second, it aims to remain relevant in an area marked by intensifying great power competition. This is why Macron's vision of 'strategic autonomy' is also reflected in France's Indo-Pacific approach, positioning the country as an alternative partner for regional states navigating pressure from both China and the U.S.
'Paris rejects bloc-based confrontation, advocating instead for a rules-based international order and multilateral solutions,' Pajon said.
A NATO member, France is also the only European country to have a permanent military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, counting 8,000 military personnel.
With seven of its 13 overseas departments, regions and communities situated in either the Indian Ocean or the South Pacific, Paris has long emphasized the importance of the region.
Its territories in the two oceans are home to about 1.65 million French nationals and about 93% of France's exclusive economic zone. With regional and global tensions now on the rise, Paris is seeking to gradually reinforce its military footprint in the area as securing vital sea lanes of communication is seen as essential for France and Europe's trade and economic sovereignty.