After weeks of telephone talks with his counterparts, Emmanuel Macron is shifting into high gear in his diplomatic effort to avoid an escalation in the Ukrainian crisis. The head of state arrived in Moscow on Monday February 7 to meet Vladimir Putin.
The president confided in journalists on the plane that took him to Russia. He said to himself “determined and lucid” about the possibility of reducing tension on Ukraine’s borders. He admitted not waiting for a solution “short term“. However, he said to himself “reasonably” optimistic about the outcome of this visit. Here’s what to take away from his statements collected by France Télévisions.
On hopes for a diplomatic outcome
Diplomacy is active. Before meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kiev on Tuesday, Emmanuel Macron is meeting the Russian President for the first time since the sudden rise in tensions in December. In parallel, the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, went to Washington on Monday to the American President, Joe Biden, while his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock, is in Ukraine.
“The one with the game today is Vladimir Putin”conceded Emmanuel Macron, calling for “see how we can re-engage something in the Normandy format [c’est-à-dire des réunions diplomatiques entre l’Ukraine, la Russie, l’Allemagne et la France] on the question of Ukraine”. Without forgetting the others “frames” of possible talks: “the discussion USA-Russia, NATO-Russia, among others, OSCE, etc”, listed the president, calling for “etry to have one mechanism of de-escalation, and reciprocal re-engagement”.That’s what we’re going to try to discuss.” with Vladimir Putin, assured the Head of State.
Emmanuel Macron said he did not believe there could be “to have short-term victory” in the negotiations, but that the important thing was to “recreate” of the “confidence” with Vladimir Putin. “We must try to remove all the uncertainties on both sides and to reduce the field of ambiguities to see where the points of disagreement and the possible points of convergence are”, he explained. Also, this interview should to allow “to clarify things in substance and trying to test hypotheses.”
On the demands of Vladimir Putin
In the immediate future, “we have to construct the terms of an equation which makes de-escalation possible on the military level”, recalled Emmanuel Macron, who recalled that 125,000 soldiers are deployed on the borders of Russia with Belarus and Ukraine. Thus, Vladimir Putin wants to get “a profound change in NATO policy, in particular what is called the open door policy, which NATO cannot give it”, namely the guarantee that Ukraine will not enter the Atlantic Alliance, recalls the French president.
“The fundamental question (…), which he wants to reopen at a time when he is in a stronger strategic position than he was fifteen years ago, is how this security space that is NATO coexisting with Russia”according to him. “I think it has been underestimated that Russia has changed the terms of the equation in recent months, deploying considerable resources in Belarus”commented the French president, linking the Ukrainian crisis to the Belarusian crisis. “You also have to see that the subject is much broader. What is happening in Belarus is at least a subject of the same importance”added Emmanuel Macron
On the role of the United States
On the eve of his departure for Moscow, the French president spoke on Sunday with his American counterpart during a 40-minute telephone exchange which is part of “in a logic of coordination”, warned the French presidency. “JI wanted to discuss with him the tactical and strategic options that we could approach”, detailed on Monday the Head of State. According to him, “the American system raises pressure”, did he regret. “Then I think [que Joe Biden] in any case agrees that the solution is in de-escalation and negotiation.”
On the options on the table
Asked about the diagram of a finlandization” of Ukraine, that is to say a kind of neutrality, Emmanuel Macron recognizes that this “is one of the models on the table”but that the crisis “can’t settle by saying that [l’Ukraine] would remain in a no man’s land, without the possibility of sovereignty, of security”. “Never compromise on the Ukrainian issue without the Ukrainians”he said, while saying to himself “struck by the coolness that President Zelensky has had in recent weeks”.