He was committed to it: Emmanuel Macron returned this Wednesday evening to the French to explain to them the
"decisions" made
concerning the war in Ukraine.
The Head of State notably detailed the sanctions against Russia and the consequences to be expected for France.
Emmanuel Macron, on the other hand, has not announced his intentions for the presidential election, while he only has two days left to formalize his candidacy.
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Read alsoEmmanuel Macron's Ukrainian turnaround
●
"Russia is not attacked, it is the aggressor"
“President Putin chose war. This war is not a conflict between NATO on the one hand and Russia on the other. There are no NATO troops or bases in Ukraine, these are lies
,” Emmanuel Macron said.
“Russia is not the attacked, it is the aggressor.
This war is even less, as an unsustainable propaganda would have one think, a fight against Nazism, it is a lie, an insult to the history of Russia and Ukraine, to the memory of our elders who have fought against Nazism.
»
These events, continued the president,
“are the signal of a change of era”.
“War in Europe no longer belongs to our history books, democracy is no longer considered an indisputable regime”
, regretted Emmanuel Macron
“but questioned before our eyes.
»
« Our Europe shows a remarkable unity, it must now agree to pay the price of peace, freedom, democracy.
»
●
"The international community has shown its support"
“The international community has shown its support
,” rejoiced Emmanuel Macron.
The Head of State notably welcomed the freezing of the
“assets of several hundred Russian personalities”
, the exclusion
of “several large Russian banks
” from Europe, which caused
“the fall of the rouble”
.
He also welcomed the exclusion of
“Russian sports teams”
from certain
“major competitions”
.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: why the Russian offensive is not going as planned
● The protection of the French on the spot ensured
“On the ground we have given ourselves the means to protect our nationals
,” assured the president.
This, “
by organizing the transfer of our embassy from one city to another in Ukraine and by allowing all French people and dual nationals who wish to leave the country as soon as possible.
»
●
“We are not at war with Russia”
“
We participated in the effort within the framework of NATO to protect the security and sovereignty of our allies by reinforcing the military presence that we already have in the Baltic states and the region.
Several hundred French soldiers arrived on Romanian soil yesterday
, ”assured Emmanuel Macron.
“
Diplomatic initiatives, sanctions against the political and economic leaders of Russia, support for the Ukrainian population will continue and intensify with the aim of obtaining a cessation of fighting.
We are not at war with Russia, we all know what binds us to this European people, the Russian people who sacrificed so much during the Second World War to save Europe from the abyss.
»
●
Macron wants to "stay in touch" with Putin
Emmanuel Macron assumes "
to stay in contact
" as much as "
necessary
" with Vladimir Putin.
“
To tirelessly seek to convince him to give up arms, to help as much as France can in the context of the talks, and to prevent contagion and the widening of the conflict
,” he explained.
Read alsoWar in Ukraine: nine maps to sum up a week of fighting
● Refugees:
"France will take its share"
The Head of State assured that “
France will do its part
” in welcoming Ukrainian refugees.
“
I thank our cities, our villages, our associations.
We will take care of those who join our country
”, he assured, explaining that France will work in “
close association with NGOs
”.
● A
“
resilience plan
” to protect the French economy
"
Our agriculture, our industry, many economic sectors are suffering and will suffer, either because they depend on imports of raw materials, or because they export to these countries
," admitted Emmanuel Macron.
"
Our growth will inevitably be affected
", he added, and "
the cost of certain products is likely to increase further
".
Faced with this, the Head of State affirmed that the State was going to “
support the economic sectors
” which would find themselves in difficulty.
“I have asked the Prime Minister to develop an economic and social resilience plan to respond to these difficulties
,” he announced.
● A summit in Versailles on European sovereignty
“
We can no longer depend on others to feed us, treat us, inform us, finance us
,” continued Emmanuel Macron.
“
We will have to promote a new economic model based on independence and progress.
On energy, "
we can no longer depend on Russian gas to move us, heat us, operate our factories
," said Emmanuel Macron, who said he wanted to defend "
a strategy of European energy independence
".
On the defense side, “
our European defense must take a new step
,” said the president.
He will convene a summit of European Heads of State and Government on March 10 and 11 in Versailles, "
who will have to decide on these subjects
”, he announced.
● The presidential campaign, an
“
important democratic debate
”
While he has until Friday to announce his intentions, Emmanuel Macron already judges that "
this (presidential) campaign will allow an important democratic debate for the nation
".
The Head of State believes that future confrontations between candidates "
will not prevent us from meeting on the essentials
", namely the unity of France.