CTK
Updated 1 hour ago
Russia must not win the war in Ukraine. It is necessary to support the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian army as long as necessary. French President Emmanuel Macron said this at a press conference after Tuesday’s meeting with his Czech counterpart Petr Pavlo in Prague. Macron also said that the Czech initiative to secure ammunition for Ukraine in countries outside the European Union is significant. France will join her.
Press conference after the meeting of French President Emmanuel Macron with Petr Pavlo | Video: CTK
Pavel on Friday during a visit Luxembourg confirmed that about 15 countries have so far signed up to the initiative to secure ammunition for Ukraine in third countries. Among other things, he is interested in getting involved Francie. The Czech president presented the plan at the Munich Security Conference in mid-February. He said that the Czech Republic located 500,000 pieces of artillery ammunition in standard caliber in non-EU countries NATO and another 300 thousand pieces in the Soviet caliber.
With Pavlo Macron, he also discussed the development of infrastructure, for example transport and energy, among other things, cooperation with the French carrier SNCF on the construction of a high-speed railway and the development of nuclear energy.
Macron and Pavel also laid wreaths at Jan Palach’s memorial plaque. The rector of Charles University Milena Králíčková and the dean of the Faculty of Philosophy Eva Lehečková also took part in the memorial service. Both presidents arrived at Palacho Square more than an hour later than planned. Among the onlookers were also several people with Palestinian flags. On the banners they carried the slogans “Stop blindly supporting Israel” or “Starvation is used as a weapon of war”.
Pavel said that he agreed with Macron that the only way is to continue supporting Ukraine. “Not only because we see it as fundamentally correct, but also because we don’t want Russia to succeed with its vision of the world,” the president said. We want to live in a world where the rules are respected and apply equally to larger and smaller countries, he said. According to the Czech head of state, the presidents have the same view of the development of the situation and possible solutions.
Regarding military equipment, Macron said that Europe has accelerated its production, supplied all available supplies, but Ukraine’s needs are such that it is necessary to go beyond stockpiles. “We have to reach out to non-European countries, we have to face short-term needs in terms of ammunition in Ukraine,” he noted.
The Czech president has the impression that, from the point of view of a possible Russian reaction, it is just as dangerous to train Ukrainian soldiers on the territory of the European Union states as it is in Ukraine. “Ukraine, despite being attacked, is still a sovereign country, even if a training mission were to operate on its territory, this is not a violation of any international rule,” said Pavel.
“It is up to us what form of assistance we choose for Ukraine, if we stay within the limit of non-combat engagement,” he added. According to him, it is necessary to approach the matter with an open mind, consider the available options and attend to them, not a priori reject any presence in Ukraine.
Macron was supposed to arrive at the Castle at 11:50 a.m., about 25 minutes later than planned. After the program with Pavel, he headed to the Straka Academy to meet with the Prime Minister Peter Fiala (ODS). The main topics of the meeting were defense cooperation, energy and the war in Ukraine. The politicians also signed the strategic partnership action plan of the two countries for the years 2024 to 2028. The document regulates mutual cooperation in many sectors, for example in defense, security and asylum policy.
The French president will also participate in the Czech-French nuclear forum in the Rudolfinum in the early evening. In the afternoon, for example, Frédéric Leliévre from the Framatome company, the director of the ORANO company Nicolas Maes or the chairman of the Technology Agency Petr Konvalinka will speak at it. The French state-owned electricity company EDF, which operates the largest network of nuclear power plants in Europe, is, together with the South Korean company KHNP, one of the bidders for the construction of a new unit in Dukovany.