The meeting of the leaders of the Weimar Triangle countries – France, Germany, and Poland – ended in Paris on Monday evening, June 12. As the leaders themselves said before the working dinner, the main topic of discussion was security guarantees for Ukraine and assistance in its counteroffensive.
Source: RFI
French President Macron expressed his wish for the counteroffensive to be "as victorious as possible" and said that in recent weeks France had "increased the supply of weapons and ammunition" and intended to continue to do so.
Polish President Duda said that for him, the "victory of Ukraine" would be the complete recapture of all its territories and expressed hope that Ukrainians would be "sent a clear signal" about the "prospect of belonging to NATO" at the next NATO summit.
Duda cited the example of Poland, which, thanks to Western support, managed to free itself from Soviet rule and become part of the Western democratic community.
"Today, Ukrainians want the same thing, they want to join the Western community politically, and we have to give them the opportunity to do so," the Polish president said, adding, "Ukraine will be in the EU and, I have no doubt, it will be in the North Atlantic Alliance."
And he called for sending "a clear signal to the Ukrainian soldiers and Ukrainian society" as well as to the president of Ukraine "about a clear perspective of belonging to NATO.
Chancellor Scholz stated: "Germany and its allies have prepared for long-term support for Ukraine, and Putin must finally realize the failure of his criminal adventure, must end the war in which hundreds of thousands of people have died.
"As we emphasized two weeks ago at the Bratislava summit together with Chancellor (Scholz), the aggressive war waged by Russia has already become a strategic and geopolitical failure for the aggressor," the French president said.
"It is also clear that Ukraine will not be conquered, and that the only peace we can imagine today is a peace based on international law and the sovereign choice of the Ukrainian people."
Macron also promised to support Ukraine for as long as it takes.
"We will make sure that Russia not only fails to emerge victorious from this sad adventure, but also fails to repeat it," the French president emphasized.
"Yes, the Ukrainian counteroffensive has begun – a few days ago," Macron answered journalists' questions. He expressed his respect for the Ukrainian defenders: the counteroffensive "has been carefully and methodically prepared by the army and its leaders, who have demonstrated for more than a year their determination, their courage and the superiority of their tactical thinking and organization."
Macron then made a prediction: "This counter-offensive should last for several weeks or several months."
"We have done everything to help it (Ukraine). A few days ago, I had the opportunity to have a long conversation with President Zelensky. We have intensified the supply of weapons and ammunition, armored vehicles, and logistical support. And we will continue (...) in the coming days and weeks," Macron said.
Background. As a reminder, Macron announced the creation of a register of damage caused to Ukraine by Russian aggression.