Macron signals Ukraine's allies not to be 'cowards'
Kyiv • UNN
Macron said it was time for Ukraine's allies to step up and provide more support as war returned to Europe.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that it is time for Ukraine's allies to step up their actions, emphasizing that now is not the time to show cowardice, writes UNN with reference to Reuters.
We are certainly approaching a moment in our Europe when it will be appropriate not to be a coward
Macron, as the publication notes, "faced negative reactions from many Western allies" after he openly discussed the idea of sending Western troops to Ukraine at a conference on Ukraine in Paris on Feb. 26.
In a reference to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Macron said on Tuesday that France and the Czech Republic were "well aware that war is back on our soil (in Europe), that some powers which have become unstoppable are extending every day their threat of attacking us even more, and that we will have to live up to history and the courage that it requires."
Macron did not elaborate on those words.
Macron's February 26 comments, made after he organized a meeting of Western leaders to rally support for Ukraine, according to the publication, "fit his reputation as a diplomatic disruptor who likes to break taboos and challenge conventional thinking.
French officials were later sent to explain that Macron wanted to stimulate debate and that the ideas being discussed involved non-combat troops performing functions such as demining, border protection or training Ukrainian forces.
During his visit to Prague, Macron is also expected to discuss support for plans announced last month by the Czech Republic, backed by Canada, Denmark and others, to fund the rapid purchase of hundreds of thousands of shells from third countries for shipment to Ukraine.
Macron suggested on Feb. 26 that Paris would contribute to the Czech initiative, without specifying how.
One of the key questions for France was how such an initiative would be financed, given that it has long insisted that the EU only use European funding for European defense industries and opposes the idea of using European money for purchases outside the bloc.
Despite Macron's apparent support for the Czech initiative, several French diplomats said Paris remains opposed to the use of European money but supports the idea of bilateral purchases.
"I would hate to leave you hoping for a change in France's position on the issue of the European defense industrial base," one diplomat said.
"We know, like the Czechs, about the need to acquire as much ammunition as possible for the benefit of the Ukrainians, but without it fundamentally changing our vision, which is that European resources should allow European industry to gain strength," the diplomat said.
