Dharamshala — Congratulatory statements from world leaders across the world began trickling in after it was announced that a historic victory for centrist Emmanuel Macron in the 2017 French presidential elections.
The spiritual leader of Tibet His Holiness the Dalai Lama, President of the Central Tibetan Administration Dr Lobsang Sangay and Khenpo Sonam Tenphel Speaker of The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) congratulated Emmanuel Macron for a resounding victory in the French election.
After Macron was announced the projected winner, the 82-year-old Nobel Peace Prize Laureate His Holiness the Dalai Lama wrote to the French President-elect, recalling conversations from their last meeting in France, 2016. "Since France is one of the pillars of the European Union, I am confident that you will be able to play an active role in its successfully meeting the challenges that lie ahead."
"As you know, I am an enthusiastic admirer of the spirit of the European Union – putting the wider community's long-term common interest ahead of national and other local concerns. I hope the European Union will grow from strength to strength and that it will be a model for other continents to follow in times to come," said His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) extended his congratulations to Emmanuel Macron on his victory in the French presidential election. In a congratulatory message to the new President -elect of France, Speaker Khenpo Sonam Tenphel of the TPiE has urged Macron's "continued support regarding the worsening human rights situation inside Tibet so as to resolve the issue of Tibet."
"I, on behalf of Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile and all the Tibetan people, would like to extend my heartiest congratulation to you and your party for the victory in the French presidential election," Ven Tenphel said, adding: "I wish you great success in fulfilling the hopes and aspirations of your people as you assume your responsibilities."
"Taking this opportunity, I would like to express my deepest gratitude for hosting and meeting His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama at Paris in September 2016 and for expressing a deep solidarity for the cause of Tibet."
"I look forward to your continued support regarding the worsening human rights situation inside Tibet so as to resolve the issue of Tibet soon. I extend my prayers and best wishes to you and your administration for all the future endeavors."
World leaders have congratulated Emmanuel Macron on his convincing win in the French presidential election as EU capitals expressed relief that France had proven not to be the next domino to fall after Britain's Brexit vote and Donald Trump's election as US president.
Angela Merkel described Macron's victory as spectacular and promised to work with him to promote European stability.
"He carries the hopes of millions of French people, and of many people in Germany and the whole of Europe," the German chancellor told a press conference on Monday. "He ran a courageous pro-European campaign, stands for openness to the world and is committed decisively to a social market economy."
Merkel's chief of staff, Peter Altmaier, wrote on Twitter: "Vive la France, Vive L'Europe!", adding that Macron's win was a "a strong signal for our common values". The German foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel celebrated Macron's win for keeping France "at the heart of Europe".
The European commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, tweeted his congratulations, saying: "Happy that the French have chosen a European future. Together for a stronger and fairer Europe." The European council president, Donald Tusk, also offered his congratulations, saying the French had chosen "liberty, equality and fraternity" and "said no to the tyranny of fake news".
Although Marine Le Pen doubled her father's score from 2002, it was clearly satisfying to many leaders that the far right appeared unable to get above the 40% mark, which some feared would be breached.
Minutes after the exit poll predicting Macron's came out, Downing Street issued a statement expressing British prime minister Theresa May's optimism over future relations between the two countries.
"The prime minister warmly congratulates president-elect Macron on his election success," the statement said. "France is one of our closest allies and we look forward to working with the new president on a wide range of shared priorities."
A congratulatory statement on Monday from the Kremlin, which had been widely seen as backing Le Pen and gave her a meeting with Vladimir Putin in March, urged Macron to work with Russia to "overcome mutual mistrust and unite to ensure international stability and security."
Ties between Russia and France are strained over the wars in Ukraine and Syria while alleged cyberattacks on Macron's campaign were linked to Moscow.
President of the Central Tibetan Administration Dr Lobsang Sangay today congratulated Emmanuel Macron for a resounding victory in the French presidential election. "Your decisive victory in the French election is a reflection of the French people's deep rooted faith in the spirit of reconciliation and integration that you have advocated as part of your En Marche campaign."
"You have also personally met His Holiness the Dalai Lama in September 2016 and voiced support for the Tibet issue on numerous occasions. Therefore, as you embark upon your responsibility as France's new President, we remain optimistic of your continued support towards the resolution of the Tibet issue based on the Middle Way Approach."
Trump also extended his congratulations, despite earlier having backed Le Pen. Le Pen's ideology and rhetoric also shared a lot of similarities with what Trump espoused on the campaign trail in 2016: putting the people of their own countries first and cracking down on immigration, which they claimed was taking away jobs, "a suicidal policy" against core US values and moral principles such as respect to human rights, fundamental freedom, democracy, the rule of law.
The White House also issued a formal statement congratulating "Macron and the people of France on their successful presidential election." "We look forward to working with the new president and continuing our close cooperation with the French government," White House spokesman Sean Spicer said in the statement.
Prime Ministerof India Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated new elected French president Emmanuel Macron said he looked forward to working closely with him to further strengthen the bilateral relations.
President of Taiwan Tsai Ing-wen on behalf of the government and the people of Taiwan, congratulated Emmanuel Macron for his win today as the next President of France," an official statement said. France is considered to be one of the oldest democracies in Europe, while "Taiwan shares the same values that the country was built on - liberty, equality, fraternity, and human rights," Tsai said in the statement, adding that she expects the two countries to continue strengthening cooperation in diverse fields.
Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated the victor, saying China and France shared a "responsibility toward peace and development in the world." "China stands ready to work with France to move the strategic Sino-French partnership to a higher level," he said according to Xinhua news agency.
Meanwhile, the Chinese daily Global Times, a Communist party controlled tabloid, hailed Macron's victory as a win against a "populism trend" following US President Donald Trump's election last year.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said "the victory of President-elect Macron is a symbolic victory against inward-looking and protectionist moves and shows a vote of confidence in the EU".
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau telephoned Emmanuel Macron to congratulate him. "I look forward to working closely with President-elect Macron in the years ahead as we work together on a progressive agenda to promote international security, increase collaboration in science and technology, and create good, middle class jobs on both sides of the Atlantic," he said in a statement earlier.
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said he had congratulated Macron and had received a text back saying he was "looking forward to working together".
Highlighting the cooperation between French and Australian soldiers during World War I, he added: "We have been side-by-side in freedom's cause for over a century, and we are side-by-side in freedom's cause in the Middle East today. So we have great work to do to make the ties between France and Australia stronger still."
In Brussels there had been no contingency planning for a Le Pen victory, in a sign of an unwillingness to even consider the ramifications of such a result more than anything else.
The election was seen as significantly more important to the survival of the European project than the vote in the UK last June, given the centrality of France, a founding member, to the EU.
Le Pen had pledged to take France out of the eurozone and to hold a referendum on France's EU membership, unless the bloc agreed to revert to a loose coalition of nations with neither a single currency nor a border-free area.
Not only did the result come as a significant relief for the European commission, but it will be seen by some in Brussels as a vindication of the EU executive's unprecedented backing for a candidate in a domestic election. The decision to not comment during the Brexit referendum in the UK, and the question of whether that had been the right way forward, had weighed heavily on officials' minds in Brussels.
After a campaign characterised by energetic, bombastic speeches and rallies, Macron used his first speech as the president-elect of France to strike a more measured and statesmanlike tone.
"On your behalf, I send the world's nations the fraternal greetings of France. I say to their leaders that France will be active and mindful of peace, of the balance of power, of international cooperation, of respect for the commitments made on development and the fight against global warming," Macron said, adding: "I tell them all that France will be at the forefront of the fight against terrorism, both on its soil and in international action. However long this battle lasts, we'll fight it without growing weak."
Macron defeated Marine Le Pen, a far-right nationalist who called for France to exit the European Union, by a margin of more than 31 points, winning 66.06% of the popular vote, even more than had been forecast.
