Bangladesh, Sept. 25 -- 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 Sere-Charlet said France's diplo...