Don’t be fooled — there’s method behind Macron’s madness

Emmanuel Macron has said that his thought is too subtle to be readily understood by mere mortals, and he’s right. Penetrating the logic of his four-dimensional brain is not a task for the intellectually deficient. The trick is to remember that he understands the Anglo-Saxon commentariat, and he knows when they can be useful to him.

Macron can see, for instance, that the English-speaking media are relishing his ‘tantrums’ over the cancellation of the Australian submarine contract and the Swiss decision to buy American warplanes in preference to French jets. But there is also likely to be a sophisticated political calculation behind his recall of his ambassadors in Washington and Canberra, and his cancellation of a bilateral summit with his Swiss counterpart.

It’s simply not credible that Macron and his entourage were really surprised by Australia’s abandonment of the submarine deal — Australian media have been predicting as much for months — or that his hysterical reaction was anything other than calculated.