President Macron: France will never take military initiative in Ukraine

Ria Novosti news agency reported that in an interview with France 2 television channel on March 14, President Emmanuel Macron affirmed that France will never take the initiative in military operations in Ukraine.

“We will never take offensive action, we will never take the initiative” - President Macron answered the question under what conditions France could send French troops to Ukraine.

According to President Macron, the French defense industry is not adapted to high-intensity battles, which is “not in any forecast”.

President Macron stressed that the current conflict in Ukraine is "vital" for Europe and France. "If Russia wins, French life will change. We will no longer have security, this will reduce European power to zero," Mr. Macron emphasized.

President Macron called "President Vladimir Putin's Russia an adversary that will not stop in Ukraine." Therefore, Mr. Macron called on Europe not to be "weak" and ready to respond in case of escalation.

The French leader also admitted that the Ukrainian Armed Forces faced a difficult situation at the front and the counteroffensive did not go as expected.

In late February, the French president declared that Paris would do everything to prevent Moscow from “winning this war.” According to him, Western leaders had discussed the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine but had not yet reached a consensus.

Since President Macron first mentioned the possibility of sending NATO troops to Ukraine, many allies and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg immediately rejected it. The West still basically wants to keep tensions with Russia below the threshold of a third world war.

However, this scenario, although initially seemingly unimaginable, is becoming a serious topic in Europe as well as NATO members./.