French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing to visit China in a tense domestic and global atmosphere, with Moscow announcing the deployment of nuclear weapons in Belarus, the decline in weapons stocks in countries in Europe, and Moscow and Beijing announcing the emergence of a multipolar world order.
In addition to the timing, the visit is gaining importance when Macron accompanies the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to Beijing, carrying what experts in European political affairs considered, during their comment to Sky News Arabia, “messages to Russia.”
At a press conference following the EU leaders’ summit in Brussels on Friday, Macron said he had suggested to von der Leyen that she accompany him to China so that we could speak with a “unified voice”.
The atmosphere of the visit
• Days before the scheduled visit from 5 to 8 April, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that his country had sent 10 fighter jets to Belarus (his neighboring ally and Ukraine) capable of carrying tactical nuclear weapons. In response to a British decision to supply Ukraine with armor-piercing missiles containing depleted uranium.
• NATO (mostly made up of countries in Europe, led by America), commented Sunday on Putin’s statement that he is “dangerous and irresponsible”.
• Countries in Europe suffer from a shortage of stockpiles of weapons, such as missile launchers, as a result of sending weapons in an unprecedented way to Ukraine, and Germany is making a great effort to provide the required tanks, while the Czech Republic announced that it is unable to provide new assistance to Kiev due to the acute shortage in its military depots.
• The Chinese President, Xi Jinping, and his Russian counterpart in Moscow declared “the birth of a new multipolar era” in which the two countries are leading the changes.
• The outbreak of massive demonstrations in France and other countries in Europe; In protest against government decisions to reduce labor gains, or as a result of rising prices.
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French political and legal expert, Elie Hatem, describes Macron’s visit to Beijing as “important” in light of these changes:
• The suffering of the European Union countries from “economic problems and a high cost of living as a result of the Ukraine war.”
• The European Union is looking to revitalize its economy, and believes that China is closer to it at this point than Russia, especially since it is outside any Western sanctions.
• The United States is no longer alone in controlling the world after the emergence of a multipolar world.
• France and European countries seek to prove their presence in this new world, by being a “link” between East and West.
• Europe seeks to consolidate its relations with China in order to mitigate the intensity of closer relations between Beijing and Moscow, which was translated into the agreements signed between Jinping and Putin in Moscow recently.
• The visit indicates that Europe is seeking political and economic openness with China.
New World budgets
He agrees with the previous argument, a researcher in political affairs and residing in Germany, Nabil Shabib, who says that “European policies towards China are characterized by great mutual interests.”
He links the visit to the changes of the “new era”, saying:
• There are international moves in the direction of balancing interests with the formation of “multi-polarity” features.
• The visit comes after the success of Chinese mediation between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
• France is keen to confirm its leadership role in Europe with its initiative to direct Europe towards China.
• Macron asked to accompany Von der Leyen so that the visit would be “European-Chinese” and not “French-Chinese”.
• The visit aims to know the Chinese position on the war in Ukraine.
• An attempt to “neutralize China” after Russia’s statements regarding nuclear weapons.
• In conclusion, the visitor conveys a message to Vladimir Putin, through China, that Western countries will not back down from their current policies regarding Ukraine and its armament.