Calling Europe Must Be Independent Regarding Taiwan, President Macron Even Receives Criticism

French President Emmanuel Macron. (Wikimedia Commons/men'smen)

JAKARTA - French President Emmanuel Macron caused a stir by saying Europe was not interested in accelerating the conflict on Taiwan and should become a "third pole" independent from Washington and Beijing.

Political actors in the country have criticized President Macron's position, for being too accommodating to China, just like the military exercises that Beijing is holding around Taiwan.

Earlier, in an interview with French newspapers Les Echos and Politico during his three-day visit to China last week, President Macron said "The worst thing is to think we as Europeans have to become followers of this topic and adapt to American rhythms or China's overreaction."

German MP for the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee Norbert Roettgen, said in a tweet President Macron had "managed to turn his China trip into a 'public relations coup' for (President) Xi and a foreign policy disaster for Europe." He added that the French president was "increasingly isolating himself in Europe."

Meanwhile, in a video posted on Twitter, US senator Marco Rubio likened it to the conflict in Ukraine, where President Macron hopes to enlist China's help.

If Europe doesn't "take sides between the US and China over Taiwan, then maybe we shouldn't take sides (on Ukraine) either," the Republican senator said.

Separately, Pascal Confavreux, spokesman for the French Embassy in the United States said President Macron's comments had been interpreted excessively.

"The US is our ally who shares our values," he tweeted.

China views democratically-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. The Taiwanese government strongly objects to China's claims.