Emmanuel Macron knew he was expected this Thursday in front of the ambassadors.
Well aware of the certain annoyance that is currently stirring the ranks of French diplomats after the controversial reform of the senior civil service, which even led them to observe a one-day strike at the beginning of the summer, an extremely rare decision that says it all malaise reigning within the Quai d'Orsay.
Maintain dialogue with Moscow
Above all, he had to set the course in a world turned upside down.
In a Europe that has seen war return to its territory.
Sometimes singled out for his exchanges with Vladimir Putin in recent months, which some, particularly in Ukraine, have deemed ineffective, Emmanuel Macron assumes his strategy.
He advocates the continuation of dialogue with Russia.
“We have to assume that we can always continue to talk to everyone”, “especially those with whom we do not agree”, he says.
For him, cutting the line with Moscow would be a strategic mistake.
“Who wants Turkey to be the only power in the world that continues to talk to Russia?
“, he asks.
“We must not give in to any form of false morality that would power us
down
,” Emmanuel Macron continued, repeating that “the job of a diplomat is to talk to everyone and especially to people with whom we are not. Okay ".
But this dialogue would have, according to him, no chance of giving satisfaction if by chance Europe were to break up.
“The division of Europe” was “one of Russia's war aims”.
Macron wants more responsive diplomats on the networks
Emmanuel Macron also wanted to pass on some instructions.
He urged French diplomats to be "more responsive" on social media.
“Our country is often attacked and it is attacked in public opinion, by social networks and manipulations,” he observes.
This is particularly the case in Africa where "the narrative, Russian, Chinese or Turkish" comes to explain to public opinion "that France is a country which is involved in neocolonization and which installs its army on their soil".
The response first involves a “real partnership policy” with the countries targeted, but “I think that, collectively, we must be much more reactive, much more mobilized on social networks”, he insists.
“It is not a question of making propaganda”, but of countering “anti-French propaganda” and of “combatting false narratives, false information and defending the reality of our action”.
“Today, we suffer too much, we do not do enough”.
The message got through.
No conflict with China over the Indo-Pacific
France is not in a "confrontational logic" with China in the Indo-Pacific space, says Emmanuel Macron, while Washington, the traditional ally of Paris, and Beijing are flexing their muscles around Taiwan.
France and Europe must build “geopolitical independence” from the Sino-American “duopoly”, observed the French head of state.
"We do not have to be summoned to choose", "we must everywhere be able to keep this freedom of action", he continues.
"We do not consider that alliances which have been structured for certain oppositions should extend over the Indo-Pacific space", he repeated again in front of the French ambassadors.
Regarding the United States, Emmanuel Macron underlined the “strong” convergence of values with Washington.
But "we have never been aligned or vassalized behind any power whatsoever," he said.
Macron assumes his reform of the senior civil service
The Head of State had obviously planned to respond to the concerns of his audience.
"This reform is good for the Quai d'Orsay", launched the French president, while acknowledging "the trouble" it has caused among diplomats.
Recalling that in 2023 the number of jobs would increase "for the first time in three decades" at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1,000 full-time jobs will be created according to a diplomatic source) and that the increase in financial resources would continue, Emmanuel Macron defended his reform.
This provides for the "extinguishment" of the two historic diplomatic corps by the end of 2023 and the creation of a new state corps.
Senior civil servants will no longer be attached to a specific administration and may change during their career.
