French President Emmanuel Macron delivered an address to the nation, declaring that Russia had become a threat to all of Europe. He stressed that “a peace treaty cannot provide for either the surrender or the destruction of Ukraine”.
His speech is quoted by BFMTV.
Macron explained his address to the nation by the “international situation” that the French are “rightly concerned about”. He noted that the United States has “changed its position” on the war in Ukraine and plans to impose tariffs on goods from the European Union. He urged people to prepare for the fact that the United States “will not be there”.
"I want to believe that the US will be on our side, but we must be prepared for this not to happen," Macron said.
Macron stressed the possibility of deploying European troops in Ukraine. However, he noted that this does not mean that “they will be on the front line”. But if a peace agreement is signed, they will be “guarantors of its observance”.
It is in Franceʼs interest to work with European allies, he believes. Next week, Macron will gather heads of state who want to participate in creating a "strong peace". This plan was prepared by France together with Ukraine and other European partners.
"Regardless of whether peace in Ukraine is achieved quickly or not, European states must be able to better protect themselves. We need to strengthen our defenses. In this, we remain loyal to NATO, but we must strengthen our independence. The future of Europe should not be decided in Washington and Moscow," Macron said.
Macron also said he had decided to start a discussion "on nuclear deterrence with our European allies".
“Whatever happens, the decision will always be made and will remain in the hands of the president, the commander-in-chief of the [French] Armed Forces,” Macron said, explaining that the French army is “the most effective in Europe” and has a nuclear deterrent to protect its neighbours.
According to Macron, Russia continues to rearm and spends 40% of its budget on defense. According to him, by 2030, Russia wants to mobilize another three million soldiers and add four thousand tanks to its arsenal. Therefore, he called on other EU countries to increase funding for armaments in Europe. In particular, he asks allies to “work together” and produce enough weapons on our territory so that the EU and Ukraine “are less dependent on the rest of the world”.
Peacekeeping troops in Ukraine
On February 17, French President Emmanuel Macron organized the first emergency meeting with EU leaders amid the US announcing the start of negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine without the participation of Europe and Kyiv.
One of the key issues was sending troops to Ukraine to monitor a possible peace deal. This was also the main point of contention of the evening. Macron proposed placing European peacekeeping forces behind the future demarcation line in Ukraine, rather than directly on it. Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland opposed it. However, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that his country was ready to deploy troops to Ukraine to implement any peace deal.
After the summit, the commander-in-chief of the Swiss Armed Forces Thomas Süssli said his country could contribute troops to a future peacekeeping mission in Ukraine if a request was made and the government agreed. Irish Prime Minister Michaël Martin said his country was also ready to send peacekeepers to Ukraine for post-war security.
The Bulgarian Parliament has adopted a declaration that the Bulgarian Armed Forces will not participate in military operations in Ukraine.
Romania could become a transit center for troops for Western peacekeeping forces in Ukraine. This decision is currently not supported by the countryʼs parliament.
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