Macron warns of potential impact of global 'double standards' on Taiwan

Singapore, May 30 (CNA) French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday urged the international community to reject "double standards" in addressing global conflicts, warning that the outcome of the war in Ukraine could have consequences for Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific.

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Macron emphasized the importance of maintaining a consistent rules-based international order, drawing parallels between Russia's war in Ukraine and rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific.

"... if we consider that Russia could be allowed to take a part of the territory of Ukraine without any restriction... how would you phrase what could happen in Taiwan? What would you do the day something happened in the Philippines?" Macron said.

He called for rejecting double standards in responding to conflicts across regions, arguing that inconsistent support for territorial integrity would undermine the credibility of democratic nations worldwide.

"There is no several global orders by definition if we stick to our principles; this is true in Europe and this is true elsewhere," he said.

While Macron reaffirmed France's alliance with the United States, he underscored the need for his country and Europe to maintain "strategic autonomy" and seek cooperation with Asian partners.

European and Asian countries face similar challenges, and those challenges are "increasingly intertwined," Macron said, implicitly referencing coercive actions taken by Russia and China "from the fringe of Europe to the archipelagos in the South China Sea."

Macron also criticized North Korea's growing alignment with Russia and its buildup of a massive nuclear arsenal unchecked by Beijing, arguing that if "China does not want NATO being involved in Southeast Asia or in Asia, [it] should prevent, clearly, [North Korea from being] engaged on the European soil."

Pyongyang confirmed in April that it had sent troops to help Russian forces fight in Ukraine.

Beijing insists it has remained neutral in Russia's war, despite its strategic partnership with Moscow, but it has faced accusations of providing military and economic support to Russia.

Macron added that competition between China and the U.S. for global leadership could "create constraints and a side effect for each of us," noting that ASEAN and European countries were also affected by "the unpredictability" of tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

In response, Macron called for the creation of "a new coalition for open trade" and urged efforts to stabilize an open, rules-based order.

The 2025 security forum is being held in Singapore from May 30 to June 1, with heads of state and defense chiefs from numerous countries attending to present their policy on the Indo-Pacific.