The hypothesis was until now taboo. At the end of an international support conference in kyiv, Monday February 26, at the Elysée, Emmanuel Macron outlined the prospect of an intervention by Western troops in Ukraine. The subject, explained the head of state, “was mentioned among the options” discussed by the twenty European heads of state and government present in Paris. The meeting was organized urgently, in order to boost support, particularly military support, for Ukraine, under pressure from Russian attacks after two years of conflict.
“There is no consensus today to send ground troops in an official, assumed and endorsed mannersaid Emmanuel Macron, after the meeting in the evening. But nothing should be excluded. We will do whatever it takes to ensure that Russia cannot win this war. » Concerning a possible participation of French troops in potential operations, the Head of State assumes a “strategic ambiguity” : “I absolutely did not say that France was not in favor of it”he observed.
These declarations contrast with the caution displayed for two years by Ukraine’s Western allies – notably France –, very keen to avoid escalation with Russia. The question of an intervention by allied troops on the ground is highly sensitive, in particular within NATO, whose members, led by the United States, seek to avoid any form of “cobelligerence” facing Russia, endowed of nuclear weapons.
“If it’s useful”
On Monday evening, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz would have formally ruled out any intervention by ground troops in Ukraine. The outgoing Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, tipped to become the next NATO Secretary General, also assured that the issue was not on the agenda. Before the meeting, Slovak pro-Russian Prime Minister Robert Fico had described“total failure” the Western strategy in Ukraine, and says he fears “the worst decision” at the end of the discussions, adding that he would go to Paris to “prevent the direct participation of Slovak soldiers in the war in Ukraine”.
However, the Ukrainians have been accumulating setbacks in the east of their territory for several days, notably with the loss of the town of Avdiïvka on February 17. At a time when American military aid is blocked by elected officials close to Donald Trump, certain states on the front line facing Russia, including the Baltic countries and Poland, are discreetly pleading to examine all possible options. “We have to prepare them all. This is a very important decision, which must be collective. You need to have time to organize this type of ground intervention in a progressive manner. For example, this can first involve the repair of military equipment on Ukrainian territory, with Western experts.explains a European diplomatic source.
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