Emmanuel Macron has said he would be prepared to send troops to Ukraine if Vladimir Putin’s forces breach the front lines, further raising the risk of Nato forces clashing with Russia’s armies.
In an interview published today, the French president said the issue of sending troops would arise “legitimately” if kyiv and President Volodymyr Zelensky made such a request.
The Economist said Macron gave the interview after giving a keynote speech last week in which he declared that Europe is “deadly” and could “die” in part because of the threat posed by Russian aggression following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
It also came as Russia claimed its forces had taken another city in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, as Moscow’s armies continued to press against kyiv’s defences.
Russia is rushing to advance against hard-pressed Ukrainian forces ahead of the long-awaited arrival of the bulk of American weapons to the front for kyiv’s outgunned troops.
French President Emmanuel Macron has said he would be prepared to send troops to Ukraine if Vladimir Putin’s forces breach the front lines, further raising the risk of NATO forces clashing with those of Russia.
In an interview published today, Macron did not rule out sending troops to help kyiv, saying the issue would arise “legitimately” if kyiv made such a request.
“I am not ruling out anything, because we are facing someone who is not ruling out anything,” Macron said when asked if he stood by comments from earlier this year that did not exclude the sending of Western troops that caused shock across Europe.
Such a move would bring NATO troops face-to-face with those of the Russian military, dramatically increasing the risk of escalation.
What’s more, some analysts believe that Russia could be about to launch a new major offensive in Ukraine.
Macron said that “if Russia decides to go further, in any case we will all have to ask ourselves this question” of sending troops, and described his refusal to rule out such a move as a “strategic wake-up call to my counterparts.”
He described Russia as “a regional destabilizing power” and “a threat to the security of Europeans.”
“I have a clear strategic objective: Russia cannot win in Ukraine,” Macron said.
“If Russia wins in Ukraine, there will be no security in Europe,” he warned.
‘Who can pretend that Russia will stop there? What security will there be for the other neighboring countries: Moldova, Romania, Poland, Lithuania and the others?
According to NATO Article 5, all members are obliged to defend others in the event of an armed attack. If Russia were to directly attack a NATO member, then the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany are among those that would be expected to respond.
Any such conflict risks escalating into a global war the likes of which have not been seen since the end of World War II.
The publication of the interview came as Moscow’s Defense Ministry said troops had “completely liberated the Berdychi settlement.”
kyiv said it had withdrawn from the village, northwest of the Moscow-controlled city of Avdiivka, over the weekend.
Berdychi, which is located about 11 kilometers from Avdiivka, is the latest in a series of small eastern villages that Russia has claimed in recent weeks.
This photo taken from drone video provided by Ukrainian patrol police shows the devastation in Chasiv Yar, an eastern Ukrainian town that Russia is attacking, Ukraine, on April 29.
Moscow has made some progress in the area since capturing Avdiivka in February after some of the most brutal battles in its more than two-year offensive.
Ukraine said in February it had established defensive lines in Berdychi after the fall of the nearby village of Lastochkyne.
Over the weekend, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said kyiv had withdrawn from Berdychi and two other nearby villages to protect “the lives and health of our defenders.”
He described the area as the “most complicated” part of the front and admitted that Russia has achieved “certain tactical successes” there.
Until Ukrainian forces on the front start to see the impact of the $61 billion US aid package approved last week, Russia will have far superior firepower.
His troops are gradually advancing around the town of Avdiivka after capturing it in February and also towards the west of Bakhmut, which he captured last year.
Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Sunday that fighting in the east had worsened recently and that his troops had retreated in three places along the front.
According to Pasi Paroinen, an analyst at the Black Bird Group, a Finnish-led volunteer group that analyzes satellite images and social media content, Russia has gained more territory in Ukraine this year than kyiv did in its counteroffensive last summer.
From June 1 to October 1, 2023, Russian forces lost control of 414.26 square kilometers of territory. From January 1 to May 2, 2024, they gained 432.3 square kilometers, most of it in the Donetsk region, the analyst stated.
Russian forces are focusing most of their attacks on the strategic town of Chasiv Yar, just west of Bakhmut, and further south around Ocheretyne.
Ukrainian officials believe Moscow wants to seize Chasiv Yar before the symbolic date of May 9, or Victory Day in Russia. That would put some of the largest cities in the Ukrainian-controlled Donetsk region within artillery range, analysts say.
Troops at the position, whose location Ukraine’s military asked not to be revealed, told Reuters that Russian attacks were constant but often unpredictable.
“We can have a quiet night and just keep watch, or we can run to the gun 15 or 20 times,” said Boichak, a bespectacled former builder.
“And the same during the day.”
A Ukrainian serviceman from the 148th Separate Artillery Brigade of the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces fires an M777 howitzer towards Russian troops near the front line, May 1, 2024.
Russian drones are a constant threat, soldiers said, while a lack of new manpower meant they were scattered and tired.
kyiv has designed a new mobilization package to replenish its easily outnumbered forces.
“I’d like to go out for at least a week and rest, but we’ll keep working as long as we need to,” Boichak said.
A battalion commander from the same brigade, who withheld his name for security reasons, said the small tactical advances by Russian forces did not yet constitute a significant strategic advantage.
However, he acknowledged Moscow’s ability to throw many more troops into battle than kyiv in its attempt to seize the initiative.
“Losing an entire company in one day is nothing to them.”
Peace talks will be held next month in Switzerland and the Swiss government will invite more than 160 delegations to the talks.
However, the government said today that “at this stage” Russia is not among the dozens of countries invited to the mid-June summit.
Switzerland said it had always been open to inviting Russia, but added that Moscow has repeatedly stressed that it has no interest in participating in the initial talks.
“Switzerland is convinced that Russia must participate in this process,” the Swiss government said in a statement. “A peace process without Russia is not possible.”
The Ukrainian government, for its part, has questioned the usefulness of Russian participation in the talks to be held June 15-16 near the Swiss city of Lucerne.
“We know that there is no point in having Russia at the table if you cannot guarantee that it acts in good faith,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in an interview with Foreign Policy magazine published this week.
Kuleba said putting pressure on Russia on the battlefield and bringing together countries “that share principles” should help make Moscow more willing to engage in dialogue.
Russian officials point to Switzerland’s adoption of EU sanctions against Moscow for its invasion and argue that it therefore lacks credibility as a neutral intermediary.
Switzerland said in January it would host the summit at the request of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Anti-tank systems known as ‘dragon teeth’ are seen in the field near the Russian border in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.
Switzerland said the talks will be based on Zelenskiy’s peace formula and other peace proposals based on the UN Charter and key principles of international law.
Invited delegations include members of the G7, G20, BRICS groups, the EU, international organizations and two religious representatives, Switzerland said.
The talks aim to create a framework for lasting peace and a roadmap for Russia’s participation in the process, he said.
“The overall goal of the summit is to inspire a future peace process,” the Swiss government said.
