FFrance and Germany want to appear united against President Vladimir Putin in time for the Russian presidential elections. President Emmanuel Macron is expected to attend a debate at the Federal Chancellery in Berlin on Friday. The conversation with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) is to be followed by a short-term Weimar triangular meeting with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Tusk said on Wednesday that Paris, Berlin and Warsaw had “the task and the power to mobilize all of Europe” to help Ukraine.
In Paris it is expected that the meeting will send a clear signal of deterrence to Moscow. Macron’s controversial statement about the ground troops is seen there as a “wake-up call” with an “electric shock effect”. It was important to initiate the European debate before the American elections, they say in Paris.
Macron sees himself confirmed by the recent statement by Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski at a NATO meeting: “The presence of NATO forces in Ukraine is not unthinkable. (. . .) It’s about Putin having to fear us, not about us fearing Putin.” Paris also points to approval from the Baltic states and Czech President Petr Pavel. The former general said in a TV interview that NATO forces could provide support on Ukrainian soil without violating international law.
Face-saving way out of the Taurus debate?
The Élysée Palace aims to advance the so-called coalition in Berlin for long-range weapon systems and ammunition on targets in the rear area. Attacks on military targets behind the Russian front lines are necessary given the difficult situation in Ukraine. The coalition was founded at the Ukraine support conference in Paris on February 26th and confirmed at a video conference of foreign and defense ministers on March 7th. State Secretary Thomas Bagger (Foreign Office) and General Christian Freuding took part on behalf of the federal government.
The coalition could offer a face-saving way out of the Taurus debate. In a phone call with Macron on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky once again emphasized the strategic importance of cruise missiles and precise guided bombs. At the beginning of March, Ukraine used intelligent AASM (Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range) guided bombs from France to the left of the Dnieper near Kherson for the first time. President Macron has promised to deliver 600 of the smart guided bombs to Ukraine, and the first 60 are expected to have arrived.
Macron travels to Berlin strengthened by the clear result of the National Assembly’s vote on military aid amounting to three billion euros for Ukraine in 2024. A large majority of the 572 MPs spoke out in favor of the French-Ukrainian security agreement on Tuesday evening: 372 voted for, 99 against and 101 abstained join the voice. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said in his speech that the French “must know, without any ambiguity, the position of everyone in support of Ukraine and condemnation of Russia.”
French communists call Macron “warmongering”
He did not accept criticism of Macron. “We will not give up Ukraine and, in principle, we do not rule out any option,” Attal said, rejecting “any logic of escalation.” France will not set any limits for itself against a Russia that knows no borders. He promised that France would ramp up ammunition production and provide 3,000 shells per month to Ukraine. Zelenskyj previously assured the French in a television conversation: “Your children will not die in Ukraine.” It is only about support, for example in the repair of Western weapons systems on Ukrainian soil, in order to save time.
At the beginning of the parliamentary debate, the Ukrainian ambassador was applauded. The Prime Minister said Europe is at a crossroads. A Russian victory in Ukraine would result in “the largest wave of migration in history,” general energy shortages and a food crisis. The right-wing Republicans (LR), the Socialists and the Greens voted together with the government camp. The left-wing party LFI and the communists voted against it.
KPF leader Fabien Roussel criticized “the president’s warmongering statements, which have shocked our compatriots.” The RN group abstained from voting. “Either you are pro-Macron, or you are accused of being pro-Putin,” criticized RN parliamentary group leader Marine Le Pen. The Senate debated the security agreement on Wednesday. Shortly before his visit to Berlin this Thursday evening, Macron wants to explain France’s support for Ukraine on television.
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