PARIS: In 2018, a year after becoming France's president, Emmanuel Macron flew to the remote French-ruled Pacific island of New Caledonia to outline his latest foreign policy plan.
French President Emmanuel Macron visits the central police station in Noumea, France 's Pacific territory of New Caledonia on May 23, 2024. PARIS: In 2018, a year after becoming France 's president, Emmanuel Macron flew to the remote French-ruled Pacific island of New Caledonia to outline his latest foreign policy plan.
Six years later, Macron's Indo-Pacific aspirations are facing their toughest test yet after days of deadly unrest on New Caledonia.against a constitutional amendment that would expand New Caledonia's electorate to include recent French arrivals. Some indigenous Kanaks believe the change will dilute their vote.to quell unrest that he called"an unprecedented insurrection".
Set in the warm waters of the southwest Pacific, some 1,500km east of Australia, New Caledonia is home to 270,000 people, including 41 per cent Melanesian Kanak and 24 per cent of European origin, mostly French. In all three, independence was rejected. However, many Kanaks refused to participate in the 2021 vote due to health concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving lingering resentment over the result.
France's Indo-Pacific territories give it bragging rights over its European Union peers. It is the only EU country to have territories in the Indo-Pacific, which are home to over 1.6 million French citizens and 7,000 soldiers.The importance of these territories rose after the 2021 collapse of a multi-billion-dollar submarine deal between France and Australia, experts said.
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