French President Emmanuel Macron emphasized the crucial importance of securing Europe’s safety by defeating Russia in Ukraine during his remarks in Paris. Urgent requests for additional weaponry from Kyiv have prompted European leaders to establish a coalition aimed at providing Ukraine with medium- and long-range missiles and bombs.
Macron highlighted that while there is “no consensus” on deploying Western troops to Ukraine, ruling out any possibilities is not advisable. Recent advances by Russian forces in Ukraine have exacerbated the country’s significant arms shortages. Kyiv heavily relies on modern military supplies from Western allies, especially the US, to sustain its resistance against Russia, a formidable military power with ample artillery ammunition.
However, the passage of a crucial $95 billion (£75 billion) US aid package, with $61 billion designated for Ukraine, encounters significant challenges in the House of Representatives. Ukraine’s defense minister lamented last weekend that half of all Western aid for Kyiv had experienced delays, resulting in both human casualties and territorial losses.
The full-scale invasion initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in Ukraine has now entered its third year, and there are no indications that the largest conflict in Europe since World War II will conclude anytime soon.
Monday’s emergency summit in solidarity with Ukraine saw the participation of European leaders, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, alongside prominent government officials such as UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron.
Representatives from the United States and Canada were also in attendance at the summit. President Macron emphasized the necessity of defeating Russia for the security and stability of Europe. He clarified that the focus is on countering Russia as the aggressor and stressed that the goal is not to wage war against the Russian people but to prevent their victory. Macron further announced the formation of a coalition that will supply Ukraine with medium- and long-range missiles and bombs for strategic strikes. However, he did not provide details on the timeline for the delivery of these weapons.
President Macron did not rule out the possibility of sending Western ground troops to Ukraine but acknowledged existing differences among allies on this matter. He clarified, “There was no consensus today to officially, assumed, and endorsed troop deployment on the ground. But regarding the dynamic, nothing should be excluded.
We will take every measure to prevent Russia from winning this war.” Macron emphasized the need for security, indicating a potential requirement for deployment but maintained France’s strategic ambiguity on the matter. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala stated that his country had no plans to deploy forces to fight in Ukraine, responding to comments by Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who mentioned varying stances among countries on the proposal. Fico indicated that some countries are prepared to send troops, some reject the idea, and others believe the proposal should be considered.
