“We must be ready for every scenario”. Emmanuel Macron does not retreat. The French president expresses himself thus after repeated declarations in recent days in which he has not ruled out sending soldiers to Ukraine in the war against Russia.
“Operations on the ground may be necessary”
“Perhaps at a certain point – I do not want and will not take the initiative – operations on the ground, whatever they may be, will be necessary to counter the Russian forces,” he tells Le Parisien, taking stock after the Berlin summit. In Germany, the president met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. “France's strength is that it can do it”underlines Macron referring to the transalpine role and potential, adding that “many countries in Europe are on the same line”.
France “is preparing for all scenarios” because “it would be a mistake, a mistake not to do so. I am moreover convinced that in some of these scenarios, everyone, depending on their role, would assume their own responsibilities”. The Berlin summit served to consolidate the relationship with Germany which, Macron notes, “has a strategic culture of great prudence, of non-intervention, and keeps its distance from nuclear power. A very different model from that of France, which is equipped of nuclear weapons and which has maintained and strengthened a professional army”.
What happens if Putin calls
If a phone call from Vladimir Putin were to arrive, Macron would answer because it is his “responsibility”. At the same time, the French president reiterates that “we must not be intimidated” by the Kremlin's threats: “We do not have a great power before us. Russia is a medium power with nuclear weapons, but whose GDP is much lower than of Europeans, lower than that of Germany and France”.
In Russia, the elections that will give a new mandate to Putin are about to end. From Macron, no messages will arrive for the Kremlin leader. “The death of Alexei Navalny” and the repression of “all opponents mean that we cannot congratulate an election that was marked by the death of those who fought for pluralism in Russia.”
Crosetto: “Nato doesn't decide when Macron has an idea”
Macron's line, reiterated with the new declarations, is not shared by the Italian Defense Minister, Guido Crosetto. “The European summit is made up of 27 countries, taking steps forward only breaks the European front. We hold dozens of meetings a month, we are united on the conduct in Ukraine, I don't understand why for internal reasons some countries should seem more active than others”, says Crosetto in an interview with Tg1.
“NATO does not decide when Macron has an idea but when all the countries meet and make a decision. Italy has said from the beginning that sending troops to Ukraine means taking a further step towards a path of no return. We would like to arrive at a just peace for Ukraine, not a war involving even more countries”, he underlines.
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