At the Shangri-La Dialogue, French President Emmanuel Macron, the first European head of state and the first leader from one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to deliver the keynote address to this premier security forum in the Indo-Pacific, made an appeal to Asian countries to build a new alliance with Europe while staying firm on China.

He presented a vision that he has consistently held since taking office in 2017 — restoring France and Europe's global influence and relevance amid the great power competition through “strategic autonomy” — a term he repeated more than 10 times in his speech. This ambition, termed by some analysts as the "Macron Doctrine," is based on a sense of deep crisis since the establishment of the post-1945 world order.

Strategic autonomy

In Singapore, he has anchored his vision in both the Gaullist legacy and Asian strategic culture. He recalled Gen. de Gaulle's historic 1966 speech in Phnom Penh, where the general championed the independence of nations, particularly Cambodia, within the Cold War context. Macron also referenced the 70th anniversary of the Bandung Conference, the birthplace of the Non-Aligned Movement.

In the context of escalating U.S.-China rivalry, the fragmentation of the global order emerges as the primary risk. To counter this destabilizing trend, Europeans and Asians must find new ways to resist. While nonalignment is not an option, Macron advocated for forging an alliance to resist pressures and “spheres of coercion” and forming a coalition for independence. [...]

A demanding friendship

Macron affirmed that "France is a friend and ally of the United States, and a friend that cooperates — even if we sometimes disagree and compete — with China”. While he aired implicit criticism to the U.S., deploring “countries that want to impose on free countries their foreign-policy choices or prejudice their alliances”, his most pointed remarks were directed at China.

In his effort to underscore the interconnected security environment and the linkages between European and Asian theaters, Macron made a bold comparison by likening the context of Russia and Ukraine to potential actions by China regarding Taiwan and the Philippines. His point was to demonstrate that the war in Ukraine is not merely a European issue — it threatens international law and sets a dangerous precedent for powerful states to seize territory by force, including in Asia. This position is fully aligned with France’s core diplomatic principle: opposing any unilateral change to the status quo through force. However, this broad analogy may raise questions — or even unease — among some Asian partners, who could see the comparison as irrelevant, unhelpful or even counterproductive, as it risks inflaming regional tensions.  This concern was notably echoed by Singapore’s defense minister the following day. The remark could even be interpreted as a shift in France's posture on Taiwan, though that was not the intended message. Nevertheless, it triggered a strong diplomatic reaction from China, which dismissed the comparison as clumsy and unfounded. [...]

The long-game vision

Macron’s speech may not have broken new ground, but it did something arguably more important: It offered a consistent alternative to the binary thinking gripping international politics. Strategic autonomy is often misunderstood as a retreat from alliances or neutrality; instead, it is a proposition for shared sovereignty among willing partners. In today’s multipolar world, middle powers must not only hedge — they must lead. Macron’s call for issue-based coalitions rooted in international law gives those countries a workable path forward.

>Read the full article on The Japan Times.