French President Emmanuel Macron does not approve of NATO’s plans to open a representative office in Japan, as he believes the alliance should focus on the North Atlantic region. This was reported by the British newspaper Finance Times (FT) with reference to informed sources.
Paris’ location complicates ongoing negotiations on the opening of the first NATO office in the Indo-Pacific region (ITR), according to the paper’s eight interlocutors.
France believes that Washington and Tokyo are interested in opening a representative office on the ground, on the backdrop of rising tensions around Taiwan and pushing European countries to be more actively involved in resolving Asian security issues. Paris worries that such moves could further complicate relations between Beijing and European countries, which fear China’s arms supply to Russia.
Previously, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs opposes NATO’s plan to open a liaison office in Japan.