Thank you, Mr. Chair.
When I started out in politics, I always claimed that no one would ever make me sing. Today, however, for the very first time—and one swallow does not a summer make—given that it is Mr. Chong's birthday, I will sing: “Happy birthday, dear Michael, Happy birthday to you.”
So there, now you can say publicly that you made me sing. With that said, I am very happy to be with you this evening.
I would like to thank Mr. Bondaz for his very informative remarks and also for agreeing to accommodate the members of this committee who were caught a bit short at the last minute.
In your article entitled “La France, une puissance d'initiatives en Indo-Pacifique”, you pointed out that the French intelligence-gathering ship Dupuy-de-Lôme transited the Taiwan Strait in 2021. In an interview about that crossing, you said that operation illustrated the consistency of France's Indo-Pacific strategy and its desire to stay the course in defending freedom of navigation despite the threats from the People's Republic of China.
I have some questions for you in that regard.
This summer, I had the opportunity to meet European Parliament member Raphaël Glucksmann. He told me that for Europeans, and the French in particular, Taiwan was something that had more to do with the United States. Obviously, he disagreed with that perception.
You said that the transit of the Taiwan Strait by the Dupuy-de-Lôme is an illustration of the consistency of France's Indo-Pacific strategy and its desire to stay the course in defence of freedom of navigation, despite the threats from the People's Republic of China.
To what extent does that view reflect reality?
From a strictly political perspective, we are told that Europeans have little interest in Taiwan, too little, in fact, and seem to believe it is something that has more to do with the United States.