French PM visits China as the new 'go-to' country, post-Brexit

A new kind of West prepares to meet the East. Emmanuel Macron arrives in China on Monday, his first Asian visit as French President and with little guess about what's at stake. On New Year's eve, the nation's youngest leader since Napoleon leader made his desires clear: a stronger Europe to "face China."

But while the rhetoric is strong, both Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping know they'll need to work together.

"There's a bunch of international problems they need to address, so I think this is really a visit to establish open channels of communication, to develop a personal rapport between both of them,” Roland Vogt, Associate Professor of European Studies, Hong Kong University said.

Among those global problems: the war in Syria and an erratic North Korea. As permanent members of the UN Security Council, these are issues neither country can ignore.

But on a nuclear Pyongyang, France doesn't have much to offer.

Joel Labi has more.