Q: That sounds like Macron. What will the Chinese make of Macron?
A: A bit bumptious, but basically OK.
Macron brought interesting gifts:
-a French photographer’s pictures of mid-20th-century China,
-a blue Sèvres porcelain vase decorated with golden fish.
So this recalls the early trade - before the "century of humiliation" - in decorative arts, though it may also remind us of where the West's knowledge of porcelain and silk- making came from (was stolen from...hurumppph).
These gifts are about Paris, world flagship of luxury retail, about China's re-opening, about the Paris Summer Olympics 2024.
Macron came on a commercial mission, "inking" (as they say) many deals for aircraft, cosmetics, financial products, and pork ( maybe I miss-remember, but I seem to recall that Russia is now the largest hog exporter in the world).
So that's interesting as instead of diversifying France's economic interests *away* from China, he's defying Washington and looking to build them up.
Indeed on top of that list above, he also sold nuclear power stations and a water desalination plant - this vd goes into Russo-Sino realities - not so much that Russia is the junior in the relationship as we are told but more of Russia's weaknesses with regard to the much smaller geographically, but much bigger in wealth and population, China:
https://youtu.be/Iibs7buNwxQ
As to Intl Relns, he came to Beijing to sell, also asking for Chinese help with Russia and Ukraine not really threatening. He said he is “convinced that China has a major role to play in building peace”.
Compare with that horror-show von de Leyden, threatening China if it thinks to provide military equipment "directly or indirectly" to Russia, because “arming the aggressor would be against international law [joking right?] and it would significantly harm our relationship.”
With 3/4 of the non-Western world linking up commercially and soon militarily, was this was very wise of the EU "Chancellor"? Or should she like Macron have been there to promote national and EU interests? Has she not had enough of American bullying and Europe's baby-like dependence on America?
So to answer the question, the Chinese leader will be pleased to have met Macron, he'll be glad to have something to ship the other way up his belt and road - there's got to be some exports from Europe surely - and he'll welcome Macron's independent Gaullian and commercial objectives.
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