WWhy did the French President call the Russian President? “Does he want to be deceived again?” Asked former Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, clearly irritated. What Bildt obviously did not know: Macron did not call of his own accord, but at the request of the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Kremlin. Russia must “talk” to Ukraine “sooner or later” to end the fighting, Zelenskyy said on Friday. As Macron explained at his nightly press conference in Brussels, the Ukrainian President did not get through in Moscow. Macron said Putin declined to speak directly to Zelenskyy. Macron therefore called the Kremlin from Brussels.
The exchange was “open, direct and short,” he said Macron after. He delivered two messages to Putin. On the one hand, he had sharply condemned the war on behalf of France. On the other hand, on behalf of Ukraine, he brought him the demand to stop the fighting and to negotiate directly with President Zelenskyy. “It has had no effect because the Russian President has opted for war,” Macron said. He felt it was his responsibility to comply with Zelensky’s request. It is about preventing further bloodshed.
Arms deliveries to Ukraine
At the same time, Macron referred to the “duplicity” Putin’s. Shortly before the invasion of Ukraine, details of the Minsk Agreement were still being negotiated. “Yes, there was duplicity and a conscious decision by President Putin to prepare for war when we were still negotiating peace,” Macron said. In addition to sanctions and punitive measures, it is important to “keep all channels open so that a ceasefire can be achieved as quickly as possible”. Macron said the war was no longer limited to military targets and civilians were being killed.
Secretary of Defense Florence Parly said on Friday on the radio station RTL: “Our goal is a ceasefire”. She confirmed that in the past France had supplied defensive weapon systems and military equipment to Ukraine and that there were further inquiries from Kiev about arms supplies. That will be decided very quickly.
foreign minister Jean Yves Le Drian said on the radio station France Inter that the security of President Zelenskyy is from now on “a central element”. “France is able to help him if necessary,” announced Le Drian. He added that it was important for Zelenskyy to “hold the fort” in Kiev. Le Drian did not specify whether he meant that French special forces would provide Zelenskyy with safe conduct should Russian troops take the capital. He left open what the “help” for Zelenskyj could look like.
President Macron has confirmed the accelerated transfer of French soldiers to Romania. He informed NATO about it. Defense Minister Parly held talks with the Romanian President at the end of January Klaus Johannis and the Minister of Defense clarified detailed questions about the stationing. France also wants to send new soldiers to Estonia as part of NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence mission. “We will unfailingly stand by our allies,” Macron said.
Criticism of Germany and Italy
The war on European soil must be understood as a wake-up call. the EU must build an independent energy supply and defense forces to protect citizens and borders and gain technological sovereignty. “The war we are experiencing shows that in a cruel way,” Macron said.
A debate has raged in France that Germany and Italy, over their dependence on Russian gas supplies, are proving unreliable allies. Former Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin called for Russia to be “economically isolated very quickly, even if we suffer from it”. Germany’s refusal to decide “immediately” on Russia’s SWIFT ban is seen by many in Paris as a “comfortable solution.”
Socialist MEP Raphael Glucksmann warned: “We will pay dearly for abandoning Ukrainian democracy.” It’s nice to illuminate the Brandenburg Gate in Ukraine’s national colors, but it would be even better if the EU were lit -Not to block sanctions and the immediate exclusion of Russia from the payment system SWIFT. Glucksmann’s criticism was also directed at Italy. Thousands of French people gathered on Republic Square in Paris on Thursday evening in solidarity with Ukraine.