A hug, a handshake that resembles an arm wrestle.
Volodymyr Zelensky holds Emmanuel Macron's palm close to him.
Nearly two years after the start of the war in Ukraine, the two presidents showcase their closeness forged in the ordeal, one that takes place far from the gilded Elysée.
Everything is not pretended and Emmanuel Macron's expression is serious.
On the battlefield, Ukraine is now in difficulty, both of us know it.
“I’m convinced that you even understand me in Ukrainian!”
, smiles the Ukrainian president while his French counterpart installs his earpiece.
One is in a black tie suit, the other in a t-shirt, as usual for the past two years.
The two are preparing to sign a security agreement, following on from the commitments made by the G7 countries at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July.
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The agreement will be valid for ten years
“and will remain so until Ukraine joins NATO”
, insists Emmanuel Macron.
A path to membership has been opened but it will be long.
Before arriving in Paris on Friday evening, Volodymyr Zelensky signed a similar agreement in Berlin with Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who had opposed, in July, rapid accession of Ukraine to the Alliance.
A “historic”
agreement
, said Zelensky in Berlin as Germany has established itself as a key support for Ukraine.
In Paris, he had a more personal word for his host.
“I want to thank you personally
,” he said to Emmanuel Macron.
“The start of the talks (at NATO) were possible thanks to your leadership
,” he said.
New stage
By signing a series of agreements with the G7 countries and 25 others, Volodymyr Zelensky hopes to strengthen the support his country enjoys.
He reached a first agreement with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in January.
French, Germans and British all concluded agreements for ten years.
The war appears to be entering a new stage.
Emmanuel Macron, who two years ago thought he could maintain a channel of discussion with Russian President Vladimir Putin, issues severe warnings.
“Russia has hardened its aggressive postures not only against Ukraine but against all of us.
Today is a new phase.
Vladimir Putin's Russia has become a methodical actor in the destabilization of the world
,” explains Emmanuel Macron.
“The Kremlin regime is currently constructing a fantasy narrative to call into question the borders”
inherited from the past.
It is
“a threat to Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.
We wonder which new country will be its prey
,” he continues.
While the announcement of the death of Russian opponent Alexei Navalny was made the same morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed a clear judgment:
“Vladimir Putin is an assassin, that is a fact”
.
Volodymyr Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron this Friday evening on the steps of the Élysée.
SARAH MEYSSONNIER / REUTERS
The death of Alexei Navalny
“reminds us of the reality of the Kremlin regime”
, continues Emmanuel Macron.
The sign of an escalation?
The President of the Republic is not explicitly worried about a future war with Russia, as other European leaders have done.
“I will not have words here that aim to worry or fuel scenarios
,” he said.
But a threshold has been crossed, he insists.
“In recent months, disinformation maneuvers, information manipulation and cyber attacks have become systematized and intensified.
Russia has crossed several thresholds with regard to European democracies.
This change in posture marks a desire for aggression towards us
.
“The intensification of aggressions, their change in nature and the thresholds crossed require a collective start
,” he repeats with regard to European countries.
The American electoral campaign and the possibility of an election of Donald Trump are worrying... Europe must
“make the effort”
for its defense, urges Emmanuel Macron.
“If we see things happening, a new phase opening, we must have the lucidity to open a phase of strategic and operational reflection
,” he says.
“We will adapt to all scenarios, the future of Europe cannot be contingent on the American election
,” he adds.
Three billion euros in French aid
In Berlin, a few hours earlier, Volodymyr Zelensky had signed a similar security agreement with Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“We are sending a very clear message to the Russian president: we will not relax our support for Ukraine
,” declared the chancellor.
Berlin announced the delivery of 36 PzH2000 armored howitzers, 120,000 shells, two air defense systems, all for a value of 1.13 billion euros.
France was also expected on figures.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Paris has remained deliberately opaque about its arms deliveries.
Officially, it was a question of preserving the secrecy of the operations.
But Ukraine's other partners were less cautious.
In the security agreement signed by Volodymyr Zelensky and Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday in Berlin, Germany emphasizes that it is
“one of the countries that has helped Ukraine the most militarily”
.
The
“Zeitenwende”
, the change of era formulated by the chancellor, is a cultural revolution in a country marked by the trauma of the Second World War.
In the agreement, the German government gives more details: 1.68 billion euros in aid in 2022, 5 billion euros in 2023 and already 7.1 billion euros for 2024. Germany also mentions other commitments of
“several billion euros”
.
In the security agreement signed in London, there is talk of 2.3 billion pounds in 2024 and almost as much in previous years.
Friday, Emmanuel Macron specified the aid sent to Ukraine and announced
“3 billion euros of additional military aid in 2024”
, after 1.7 billion euros in 2022 and 2.1 billion euros in 2023. Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the three agreements concluded, without wanting to compare them.
“It is important for Russia to see that Ukraine is not alone
,” he repeated, before then specifying
“that it was not an alternative”
to American support.
"We are together.
This alliance is necessary to defeat Russia
,” he stressed, hoping that the political blockages in Washington which are delaying the adoption of a new aid package will be lifted.
If the agreements are similar, when they provide for example a consultation system in the event of future Russian aggression, each country has been able to detail the civil or military support that it intends to develop.
For the fog over French aid, the Élysée has published a
“non-exhaustive”
inventory of materials delivered over the past two years.
As artillery assets, France delivered 30 Caesar cannons, 6 TRF1 cannons and 4 unit rocket launchers.
In terms of armored vehicles, it provided 38 AMX10RC, light armored reconnaissance vehicles, 250 armored front vehicles, 120 VLTT P4, jeeps, and 17 light Milan anti-tank missile firing stations.
Regarding anti-aircraft defense, 1 SAMPT long-range system, 2 Crotale NG, 5 Mistral gunnery stations and a GM200 radar were delivered.
Finally, France has delivered
“around a hundred”
long-range Scalp missiles and will deliver
“several hundred”
A2SM bombs.
These deep strike capabilities, equivalent to the British StormShadow, allowed Ukraine to achieve tactical successes in Crimea.
Germany, for its part, still refuses to deliver equivalent Taurus missiles.
“Our effort focuses on responsiveness and quality
,” we argue in Paris, criticizing, in a whisper, Germany's financial declarations.
At the start of the conflict, Berlin began by wanting to deliver helmets to the Ukrainians... It was another time.