Associated Press

Amsterdam

French President Emmanuel Macron is set to deliver a speech outlining his vision for the future of Europe during a two-day state visit to the Netherlands that began Tuesday.

The afternoon speech at a theatre in The Hague comes after Macron raised eyebrows with comments on Taiwan after his recent visit to China.

“The question we need to answer, as Europeans, is the following: Is it in our interest to accelerate (a crisis) on Taiwan? No,” Macron was quoted as saying in an interview published Sunday in French newspaper Les Echos and by Politico Europe.

“The worst thing would be to think that we Europeans must become followers on this topic and take our cue from the U.S. agenda and a Chinese overreaction.”

The remarks raised questions about whether Macron’s views are in line with the European Union’s position and whether the bloc of 27 is able to become the “third superpower” that Macron says he hopes to build within “a few years.”

The interview was Friday, before China launched large-scale combat exercises around Taiwan that simulated sealing off the island in response to the Taiwanese president’s trip to the U.S. last week.

Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Beijing last week for talks and urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to “bring Russia to its senses” over its war in Ukraine. He emphasised the concept of “strategic autonomy” for Europe which he has promoted for years.

Macron’s trip to Amsterdam and The Hague is the first state visit by a French leader since Jacques Chirac 23 years ago and underscores the close links between the Netherlands and France and the two leaders.