France Won't Boycott The Diplomatic Of Beijing Olympics, Jean-Michel Blanquer: Sports Must Be Protected From Political Interference

Winter Olympics Illustration (Twitter @Beijing2022)

JAKARTA - France will not follow in the footsteps of Western governments in a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing even though China's human rights abuses must be condemned, Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said.

The United States, Canada, Australia and Britain this week said their government officials would not attend the Olympics in an attempt to send a message to China about the country's human rights record.

"As for the diplomatic boycott... France won't do it," Jean-Michel Blanquer told BFM TV. "Sport has become a world in itself that must be protected from political interference."

He stressed that French Sports Minister Roxana Maracineanu would attend the Beijing Olympics. However, Blanquer stressed that human rights violations in China must be condemned.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was more cautious, saying Paris should take the same stance as other European Union countries.

Speaking at a joint news conference with his new German counterpart Annalena Baerbock in Paris, Le Drian said there was a need for a common European position on the issue of the diplomatic boycott of the Olympics in Beijing.

Baerbock also called on the European Union to adopt a common stance.

He said the case of Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai whose whereabouts came to international attention after admitting to being sexually harassed by China's former vice premier.

"When a woman utters a reproach like that, it needs to be heard in an international context. We need to pursue this case and arrive at the same answer," Baerbock said during his first trip abroad as foreign minister.

Paris will host the Summer Olympics in 2024.