The President of France, Emmanuel Macronsolemnly addressed the French on Wednesday in a speech in which did not spare criticism of the Russian intervention in Ukrainebut left a door open for dialogue with his counterpart, Vladimir Putinto end the aggression.
“I have opted to maintain contact with President Putin and I will do it as long as I can, as long as it takes to try tirelessly to convince him to give up his arms”, assured the French head of state in his second speech to the nation since the intervention broke out on the 24th.
Macron, who for months remained the only Western leader who trusted diplomatic channels to stop Putin’s aggressive intentionscombined the harshness against the Russian president, to whom he attributed a “spirit of revenge”, with that appeal to dialogue that distinguishes him from other world leaders.
He assured that they will maintain pressure on Moscow, both in terms of sanctions, which he pointed out may intensify and worsen in the coming days, and in support of the Ukrainian people, whose courage he praised, as well as that of its president, Volodímir Zelensky.
Portraying Russian President Vladimir Putin as “the aggressor” in front of the flags of France, Ukraine and the European Union, Macron said: “This war is the fruit of a spirit of revenge born of a revisionist reading of European history. . Russian forces are besieging the most important Ukrainian cities. The days ahead are likely to be increasingly difficult. Hundreds of thousands of refugees are fleeing to neighboring countries.”
Macron held several meetings with Putin, including one in Moscow, before Russia invaded Ukraine last Thursday.
Conflict with serious consequences
He made no reference to his request to join the European Union, to which France has been firmly opposed until now and the conflict seems to have advanced in a few days.
Macron does not want to leave any front that does not serve to soften Moscow, including the internal one, because he reiterated that the West “is not at war against Russia.”
AND He called on the Russian opposition to rise up against Putin: “We stand with the Russians who reject an undignified war in their name and who have the courage to defend peace and show it, in Russia and elsewhere.”
Macron denied the Kremlin’s rhetoric that a war between Russia and the West is being waged on the Ukrainian battlefield, but acknowledged that this conflict will have “increasingly serious” consequences in Western countries as well and will mark the history of Europe for the next few years. years.
“The war is before our eyes”
“The war in Europe has come out of the history books and has been placed before our eyes. Democracy is questioned before our eyes,” said Macron, who considered that the old continent is witnessing “a change of era.”
The conflict, he confessed, will affect the daily lives of citizens because “economic growth will be affected” and “petrol prices and heating bills may rise in France”while warning of the arrival of hundreds of thousands of displaced people.
Faced with this, he promised to welcome those who correspond in France and help the most affected sectors of the French economy, but asked that both France and Europe prepare for the new timeswhich go through greater economic, energy and military independence.
“The unity of Europe has been remarkable, but now we have to pay the price of peace, of freedom, of democracy. Europe has to invest more to be less dependent on others and become a more sovereign power”, he indicated. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
