Macron promises Zelensky more military aid

Emmanuel Macron promised Volodimir Zelensky yesterday, during a long working dinner at the Elysee that lasted until after midnight, more military aid to Ukraine, especially in anti-aircraft defense and with armored vehicles and light tanks. The French president could give more details about what kind of weapons will be delivered to Kyiv during a televised interview that he will give this Monday, at 8:00 p.m., on the TF1 channel.

Zelensky flew to Paris from an air base near Aachen, in Germany – where he received the international Charlemagne prize – aboard an official French plane. At the Vélizy-Villacoublay airport, on the outskirts of the capital, the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Catherine Colonna, were waiting for him. The trip was kept secret until hours before it took place for security reasons.

According to Elysee sources, Macron and Zelenski “reviewed in detail” various aspects of the progress of the war. “Both have a very particular relationship of trust,” said the same sources. Among the topics discussed were “Ukrainian intentions” in the planned counteroffensive against the Russian invaders

France insists on the withdrawal of the Russians from all of Ukraine, including Crimea, and especially from the Zaporiya nuclear power plant

In a joint statement it was stated that Russia must immediately withdraw all its military forces from the territory of Ukraine “within its internationally recognized borders”, which includes the Crimean peninsula. Express mention was made of the withdrawal of the Zaporiya nuclear power plant because it poses a “serious threat.” In addition to the shipment of new weapons, France is committed to the training of 4,000 Ukrainian soldiers in Poland.

In an interview with the newspaper L’Opinion, before dinner with Zelensky, Macron noted that Russia has already “geopolitically lost” the war. According to the French president, the conflict has meant a decline in rank for Moscow at the international level because it has begun “a form of vassalage with respect to China” and has lost its access to the Baltic to a certain extent due to the decision of Finland and Sweden to enter into NATO. “It was unthinkable even two years ago, so it is already a geopolitical defeat,” Macron stressed. The head of state alluded to the future, when the war ends, which will require guarantees for Ukraine and a European security architecture that must include coexistence with Russia and “rebuild sustainable balances.”