Chinese netizens have been buzzing about French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent visit to Southeast Asia, where he aimed to offer Vietnam and other regional countries a “third option” beyond the U.S. and China.
One article, titled “Macron Just Arrived in Hanoi and Tried to Stir Up Trouble in the South China Sea, Only to Be Instantly Deflated” (《马克龙刚到河内，就以南海挑拨中越关系，结果下一刻被彻底破防》), captured the general sentiment. The article recounts how Macron raised the South China Sea issue during talks with Vietnamese officials, likely hoping to leverage perceived frictions between Vietnam and China. However, Vietnamese leaders pointedly avoided the topic, instead emphasizing economic ties. To Chinese commentators, this was a clear sign that Macron’s attempt to drive a wedge between the two neighbors had fallen flat.
The article also references comments from Vietnamese South China Sea expert Nguyen Thanh, who explained that Vietnam practices “bamboo diplomacy”—a flexible but cautious foreign policy designed to engage global powers while resisting interference. Vietnam’s historical experiences with French colonization and American military intervention, the article suggests, have left it wary of Western involvement in regional affairs.
Adding to the ridicule was a brief moment caught on camera as Macron and his wife disembarked from the plane in Hanoi. Brigitte Macron appeared to swat his hand away, a gesture some Chinese netizens gleefully interpreted as symbolic of France’s diplomatic failure, turning it into a meme that paralleled Macron’s personal awkwardness with France’s broader regional setback.
Beyond the memes, some Chinese observers argue that France’s true objective in the region may be less about offering strategic balance and more about arms sales. With Vietnam seeking alternatives to its aging Russian military equipment and having shown interest in Chinese fighter jets, such as the J-10CE and FC-31, at the Langkawi Air Show, Macron’s “third option” pitch appeared to many as a thinly veiled push for French defense exports.
