France Ambassador to Bangladesh Jean-Marc Séré-Charlet has said France aims to help its partners in South Asia, such as Bangladesh, achieve their own strategic autonomy, so that they are not forced to choose between Washington and Beijing. "Faced with the growing rivalry between the United States and China, France is positioning itself as a balancing power, leveraging its status as an Indian Ocean nation," he told diplomatic correspondents in Dhaka last week.

France shares many values and interests with Bangladesh also as the only member state of the European Union who is a major power in the Indo-Pacific region, which is home to 2 million of its citizens. Ambassador Séré-Charlet said France's diplomatic and strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific region, particularly in its relationship with Bangladesh, are centered around promoting a multilateral "third way."

Speaking at the "DCAB Talk", he said promoting a "third way" in the face of hegemonic powers means strategic autonomy and rejection of imperialism. Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh (DCAB) hosted its flagship event at the Jatiya Press Club. DCAB President AKM Moinuddin and its General Secretary Emrul Kayesh also spoke.

Ambassador Séré-Charlet said France does not want Bangladesh to choose between Europe and other partners, stressing that they are ready to strengthen their engagement with Bangladesh.

"So, France, Europe, we never say to Bangladesh - you choose between us and them. That's what I said. I mentioned at the very beginning. We build partnership. Partnership is not excluding. It is involving," he said, noting that the Franco-Bangladeshi relations have great potential.

On Bangladesh's plan to purchase Airbus aircraft, the French Ambassador said Biman Bangladesh Airlines chose Airbus for technical and business reasons rather than political considerations.

"That's why, for very good reasons and technical reasons, Biman has chosen Airbus......so if you want to be more on the map, if you want Europe to engage, you have to show the interest of engaging in the long term partnership. That's why Airbus matters," the envoy added.

Biman maintained its interest with Airbus and discussions are still going on. "We know it may take sometimes, because we want discussions to be done in the best manner possible," the Ambassador said, noting that he could not disclose details of the technical negotiations because the deal is between Biman and Airbus.

"So it may take time, but I can assure you that negotiation has been going on and very well with others. It's an Airbus contract, which will come, in due time, with Airbus signing with Biman. So I'm not worried at all," said the French envoy, expressing confidence in both the government and Biman regarding the negotiations.

The envoy said this this is a good test for the present government. "So for me, it's not an issue. Wait some time, some days, and we'll see what happens, but things are going well."

He also talked about Bangladesh's engagement with Europe, including the possibility of a free trade agreement (FTA) and cooperation in the aviation sector. The Ambassador stressed that France and Europe are not seeking to exclude other countries from Bangladesh. "So we are not in an exclusion mode."

He said the European Union has signed FTAs with several countries but Bangladesh has yet to be included in that group. He pointed to Bangladesh's strong trade relationship with Europe, particularly in the readymade garment sector.

The Ambassador said France and Europe remain open to partnership, while cautioning that opportunities could be missed if Bangladesh decides not to move in that direction. "We believe in partnership. We want to create a true partnership, a long-standing partnership."

He also highlighted cooperation between Bangladesh and French companies in high-technology sectors. Ambassador Séré-Charlet said France is a "long-standing, reliable, predictable, and benevolent" partner for Bangladesh.

And like Bangladesh, he said, it seeks to promote - cooperation rather than confrontation; multilateralism; peace in the world.

The envoy said France is a secular country that does not discriminate against its citizens based on their beliefs, respects all religions and notably Islam, maintains strong and longstanding ties with the Arab and Muslim world, and supports the Palestinian people.

Talking about maritime security and stability in the Indian Ocean, the French envoy said it starts with the freedom of navigation.

The economic relations between France and Bangladesh are characterised by dynamic trade, but with a structural imbalance. Bilateral trade exceeds 4.5 billion euros, marking a significant increase over the decade.

However, France has a structurally deficit balance, as imports of Bangladeshi products (particularly textiles) are significantly higher than French exports. Nearly 95% of French imports from Bangladesh come from the textile sector (clothing and apparel). The remaining imports primarily involve major contracts, the aerospace industry, equipment, and technology.

France is a pioneer in feminist foreign policy since 2019. It prioritizes gender equality in diplomacy, development, and multilateral forums based on its feminist foreign policy strategy (2025-2030) to promote gender equality and women's rights globally.

This policy aligns with efforts by other countries and addresses growing challenges to these principles. Its strategy focuses on education, eliminating gender-based violence, political participation, economic empowerment, and reproductive rights, he said.

New priorities include feminist climate action, digital rights, and economic policies supporting equality, said the envoy, noting that France's feminist foreign policy is a proactive response to systemic inequalities and rising threats to women's rights, emphasizing multilateral cooperation and domestic action.

"For all these reasons, we are ready to strengthen our engagement with Bangladesh, which is sometimes very cautious on the international stage. We need that the countries that share the same values and goals (peaceful international relations) be more assertive and more proactive, to cooperate more, and to demonstrate, through their example, the effectiveness of this model," said Ambassador Séré-Charlet.

He said they are seeing an unprecedented rapprochement with Canada, as well as with other countries. "It is not only geopolitical but also economy and business. I believe that Franco-Bangladeshi relations have great potential."