Germany, France and Poland showed their unity on Friday after the tug-of-war between Berlin and Paris over aid to Ukraine, ensuring that they spoke with a single voice and renewing their firm support for kyiv against the Russian enemy. Olaf Scholz announced the creation of a “new coalition of capabilities for long-range artillery.”
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On Friday, March 15, Olaf Scholz and Emmanuel Macron showed their “unity” on the issue of aid to Ukraine, after weeks of strong tensions over the strategy to adopt vis-à-vis Moscow, at a summit in Berlin with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
“Today more than ever, our unity is our strength, and above all, our three states, Germany, Poland and France, have a special responsibility,” declared the German Chancellor. “In particular, we are going to buy even more weapons for Ukraine, on the global market as a whole,” he declared with satisfaction at the end of the meeting.
The three countries are “united” and “determined to never let Russia win and to support the Ukrainian people until the end,” echoed the French president.
“We will continue, as we have done from day one, without ever taking the initiative in any escalation,” he added to the press, as if to reassure his allies after his statements, which caused confusion at the end of February, about the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine in the future.
This meeting was intended to end a phase of acrimonious exchanges that followed the Ukraine support conference organized in Paris on February 26, undermining the West's message of unity vis-à-vis Moscow.
Olaf Scholz categorically rejected the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine.
“New coalition capabilities for long-range artillery”
The dissonance went up a notch last week when Emmanuel Macron stated in Prague that Europe was entering a moment “in which we must not be cowards.” And on Thursday, March 14, just before his trip to Berlin, the French president once again insisted that those who put “limits” to their commitment to support Ukraine “do not choose peace, but defeat.”
The German leader, who fears an escalation of the conflict, has been criticized by several of his allies and even within his own majority for his refusal to supply long-range Taurus missiles, which, in his opinion, would require the intervention of military personnel German.
A symbolic gesture? On Friday, it was he who confirmed the creation of a “new coalition of long-range artillery capabilities” for kyiv, already mentioned in Paris at the end of February by the French president.
France, Germany, Poland – At the heart of Europe, the Weimar Triangle is an essential sign of our cohesion. More than ever, our unity is our strength. Les Ukrainiennes et les Ukrainiens peuvent compter sur nous. pic.twitter.com/mO1bOkryRS
— Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz (@Bundeskanzler) March 15, 2024
Donald Tusk's mediation may have helped ease tensions. On Friday, the Polish prime minister and former president of the European Council denied “malicious rumors” about the disagreements.
The fight between the Franco-German pair was ill-timed at a time when Russian forces are advancing in eastern Ukraine, not least because Western aid to kyiv is drying up.
Russia is also continuing its attacks on Ukrainian cities, with its missiles killing at least 20 people and wounding more than 70 on Friday in Odessa, a major port city on the Black Sea, which has already been the target of two attacks in recent days. .
Russian President Vladimir Putin is headed for a new coronation, assured of winning another six-year term in an unopposed presidential election taking place between Friday and Sunday.
Scholz and Macron, two leaders attentive to public opinion
Olaf Scholz keeps repeating that Germany is the largest European contributor in absolute terms of financial and military aid to kyiv, far ahead of France. And he regularly calls on certain European allies to do more, indirectly also targeting Paris.
The three leaders, who meet in a format known as the “Weimar triangle”, will meet again at a European summit in Brussels on March 21 and 22. Donald Tusk has announced that they will then meet in Poland at the beginning of summer.
Francja, Niemcy i Polska, razem, zdeterminowane, by wspierać Ukrainę na każdym poziomie iw dłuższej perspektywie i nigdy nie pozwolić Rosji wygrać.
Dla naszego bezpieczeństwa, dla Europy.
Nasza jedność jest naszą siłą. pic.twitter.com/gAEIDMyjvZ
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) March 15, 2024
On the eve of the meeting, Olaf Scholz had assured Emmanuel Macron that he had “a very good personal relationship” with him, although experts regularly point out the differences in character and political style between the prudent German and his French counterpart, adept at calling the shots. attention.
The proximity of the European elections interferes with the strategy of the two leaders, attentive to public opinion, according to observers.
Olaf Scholz, in free fall in the polls, is under pressure from his social democratic party, very attached to its pacifist tradition. According to a recent poll, the majority of Germans oppose the delivery of Taurus missiles.
Emmanuel Macron's camp focuses its campaign for the European elections on support for Ukraine, accusing the extreme right, a favorite of the process, of positions favorable to the Kremlin.
Article adapted from its French version
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