There are more and more signs that after Merkel withdrew from German politics, Macron, who intends to reshape the European Union, wants to make the EU compete with the United States and Russia, rather than following the United States against other countries.
In the past few days, France has done several major things, which are indeed impressive.
The first thing is to call for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine during the Olympics. According to Agence France-Presse, after Macron called for a truce, Zelenskyy said on May 17 that the truce would only help Russia mobilize Russian troops and heavy equipment.
In short, Kiev decisively rejected the request of France.
Putin also said that Russia does not support a truce during the Paris Olympics.
Although neither Russia nor Ukraine has given France face, as the host of the Paris Olympics, France's call for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine during the Olympic Games is undoubtedly a responsible performance, which shows France's demeanor as a great power.
The second thing is to stand up for Armenia. After the outbreak of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Armenia, which believed that Russia was unreliable, chose to gradually distance itself from Russia and embrace the United States and Europe.
Although Russia stresses that it still regards Armenia as an ally, everyone knows that Armenia cannot trust Russia as much as it did before. The departure of the Russian army from Nagorno-Karabakh is one of the manifestations of this.
France seized the opportunity. Macron chose to export weapons to Armenia, and the EU provided economic help to Armenia.
France revealed on May 17 that chaos had erupted in New Caledonia, which was under French jurisdiction, and that there was a shadow of Afghanistan fanning the flames. In this regard, Afghanistan said that Afghanistan has nothing to do with this matter.
But in any case, as far as Armenia is concerned, France is happy to see it come to fruition. The reason is simple: the more annoyances the adversary, the easier it will be for Armenia.
The third thing is to ignore the warnings of the United States and Britain and throw an olive branch to Russia. France has invited Russia to participate in the "Normandy landing commemoration", which has made the United States and Britain and other allies unhappy. Many American and British politicians said that France's decision was incredible.
It is still unknown which Russians Macron will invite, but at a time when the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is unresolved and NATO is huddling against the Russian army, France's doing so will undoubtedly chill the United States and Britain. But even so, Macron did just that.
In the matter of "how to deal with Russia", France's choice is indeed incomprehensible. On the one hand, when the United States and Britain have expressed their reluctance to send troops to Ukraine, Macron has repeatedly hinted that France may send troops to Ukraine, which has angered Russia.
On the other hand, the US House of Representatives supports the confiscation of "frozen Russian assets", while France does not support this. Well, now France has given Russia another big gift.
It is not difficult to see from France's failure to play cards according to the routine that Macron is unwilling to let France be a pawn and bridgehead for the United States to contain its opponents.
The fourth thing is to prepare to replace von der Leyen. In the past few years, von der Leyen has spoken out for the United States, and many decisions made by von der Leyen in trade negotiations and treatment of the United States have aroused the dissatisfaction of France and Germany. Even if von der Leyen is German, Scholz is reluctant to make von der Leyen the secretary general of NATO.
In the view of Macron and Scholz, what von der Leyen needs to do is to speak for the EU, not to make the EU pay for the interests of the United States. Therefore, France and Germany are interested in removing von der Leyen from power and then replacing von der Leyen with someone more suitable. Former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and Angela Merkel, who has been at the helm of Germany for 16 years, are the most suitable candidates.
Macron believes that the EU cannot be a vassal of the United States, and the EU should be strategically autonomous and not controlled by others. But for the United States, a strong and united EU is intolerable, and such an EU will make the hegemony of the dollar face a tough challenge.
It is undeniable that the United States has deeply infiltrated the European Union, and there are still a large number of American troops in Germany itself. At present, if France wants to reshape the European Union, the most important thing is to fight side by side with Germany, otherwise it will be easily broken by the United States one by one. Because the influence of pro-American forces in the EU cannot be underestimated.
In fact, what France wants is not just a vassal of the United States, but a vassal of no one. Confronting Russia, hardening the United States, threatening that "NATO is brain dead", and pushing the euro to the world are all manifestations of France's unwillingness to succumb to the United States and Russia.
As for whether France will be able to get its wish, it is difficult to say for the time being, and the White House will not accept the EU getting rid of US control. But in any case, France's move is indeed not simple. The next most important thing is to see Germany's choice.