On Thursday evening, French President Emmanuel Macron spent more than an hour answering followers’ questions on his social networks about the war in Ukraine, the Russian threat and the security of Europe, bfmtv.com reports.
A few hours earlier, the French leader held a long meeting with the leaders of parliamentary parties and groups to discuss these issues. He believes that due to the events around Ukraine, "our security and our interests are at stake."
Macron considers the situation “alarming”
The French president said that Ukraine “cannot militarily retake” the territories occupied by the Kremlin. He called for “a lasting peace that will allow Ukraine to be stable and have security guarantees” and “a peace that Ukrainians will choice themselves”.
Macron called the three years of war “a failure for Russia”, recalling the “horrific war crimes in Bucha” committed by Russian troops.
“Ukraine has held up remarkably well”, Macron noted, adding that “the situation is worrying”.
“Russia has increased its armaments (...) and expanded cooperation with Iran”, he said.
With the help of North Korean soldiers, Russia has “brought the war against Ukraine to a global level”.
Europe must increase defense spending
Macron called on Europeans to increase defense spending and “invest even more in the military, both in France and throughout Europe.”
“We will have to review our budget allocation,” he warned.
According to the French leader, it will be necessary to “strengthen cybersecurity on our social networks, protect ourselves from interference and attacks, because our security is at stake.”
France “has no intention of participating in military operations in Ukraine”
“We have no intention of sending troops to war in Ukraine,” the French president said.
He stressed that the point was to “send forces (to Ukraine) to guarantee peace after a peace agreement has been negotiated and signed.”
The goal of the Elysee Palace is to guarantee Ukraine’s security, he stressed.
“We talked about sending troops with Britain and other countries,” he said, but added that it was too early to reveal details.
“Today we are equipping (Ukrainian military), providing weapons, aircraft,” the president recalled.
Macron wants to establish “massive joint European financing” for defense projects
The French president was asked about European defense cooperation. According to him, “creating a joint army will be very difficult,” but he explained that he wants to “strengthen the European security and defense foundation” and “a common defense potential” of Europe.
For this he wants to create “large-scale joint European financing in the coming weeks to buy and produce more” in the defense sector.
But Macron warned that if we buy weapons from the United States, “we are not increasing our autonomy.”
According to a study by the International Institute for Strategic Studies published last October, 34% of Europe’s defense purchases were made from American manufacturers.
The president also noted that “we will have to increase” the share of GDP allocated to defense.
Macron answered what he was going to talk about with Trump
The French president confirmed that he would go to Washington next week to meet with Trump.
“I am going to tell him: ‘You cannot be weak against Putin, he is not you. How then can you be a reliable force against China? If you allow him to capture Ukraine, Russia will be unstoppable. It will take the Ukrainian army and our equipment, which would be a strategic mistake,” the French president noted.
Elections can only be held in conditions of lasting peace
The French president was asked to comment on the shocking statements of Donald Trump, who called his Ukrainian counterpart a “dictator without elections” and accused him of starting a war against Russia.
Macron believes that “President Zelensky is legitimate” and “elected in free elections,” recalling that martial law has been in effect in Ukraine for three years.
“Do you think that in the same situation we would have fun holding elections?” Macron asked.
The French president believes that his Ukrainian counterpart cannot hold elections, emphasizing that this is possible only in conditions of lasting peace.
“Do you think he can organize presidential elections or parliamentary elections in another country, where several million Ukrainians have fled for safety?” Macron said, recalling that “a whole strip of Ukrainian territory has been seized by Russia.”
Background. Yesterday Emmanuel Macron announced the results of the second summit of the leaders of the countries.
“Ukraine must always be included in the negotiations and its rights must be respected,” he said.
He stressed that the summit participants were convinced of the need to increase defense spending, and decisions would be made in the coming days and weeks.