‘France supports India, has not allowed China to play procedural games at UNSC’

France has been supportive of India on Kashmir and has not allowed China to play any “procedural games” on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), diplomatic advisor to the French president mentioned on Thursday.
On a go to to India for the annual strategic dialogue between France and India, Emmanuel Bonne, the diplomatic advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron, mentioned, “When China breaks the rules, we have to be very robust and very clear and this is the sense of our naval presence in the Indian Ocean.”
Delivering a chat on “France and India: Partners for a Stable and Prosperous Indo-Pacific”, organised by the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), Bonne additionally mentioned France is near the QUAD — the grouping of US, Japan, Australia and India — and should maintain some naval workout routines with them in future.
Noting that the French Navy is the one European Navy which patrols the Taiwan strait, he mentioned it was not as a provocation however a option to assert the need to abide by worldwide regulation.
“Let us not go for confrontation and I understand that it’s much easier to say this from Paris than from Delhi when you almost have a problem in the Himalayas and when you have Pakistan at your border,” Bonne mentioned.
“On direct threats to India, we have always been very clear. Whether it be on Kashmir, we have been very supportive of India in the Security Council, we have not let the Chinese play any kind of procedural games. When it comes to the Himalayas, just check our statements, we are perfectly clear. What we say publicly, we say to the Chinese also privately, there is no ambiguity,” he mentioned.

Talking about his dialog with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on the Strategic Dialogue earlier within the day, he mentioned the dialogue was about strategic alternatives in addition to the bilateral defence and safety relationship. He mentioned army cooperation and the Indian Ocean had been additionally a part of the dialog.
“In particular we are sharing information, we are maneuvering together our navies, our air and space commandments are coordinating. We are building capacities and cooperating. When it comes to the Indian Ocean, we are working on maritime surveillance,” he mentioned.

Bonne will even name on different Indian dignitaries throughout his go to. The final version of the strategic dialogue was held in February 2020 in Paris.