As of: March 7, 2024, 7:06 p.m
By: Stephanie Munk
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The alliance between Germany and France is floundering.
There is too much disagreement about tactics against Putin in the Ukraine war.
Pistorius defended himself against allegations.
Berlin/Paris – Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron have never been said to have a particularly good relationship.
Recently, however, deeper and deeper cracks have become apparent.
The differences are too great when it comes to the war in Ukraine – and what they want to signal to Russia.
French President Macron is relying on a strategy of deterrence against Russia.
This became clear last week when he proposed sending NATO ground troops to Ukraine to fight Russia.
An absolute no-go for Olaf Scholz, who, despite all the support, acted calmly and thoughtfully in the Ukraine war.
One rushes forward, the other hesitates: Emmanuel Macron (l.) and Olaf Scholz are sometimes far apart when it comes to the Ukraine war.
© Chris Emil Janssen/Imago
Scholz hesitates about Taurus, Macron talks about ground troops in the Ukraine war
The German Chancellor cannot even bring himself to deliver Taurus - for fear of a further escalation of the war.
France, on the other hand, has long since delivered cruise missiles.
Scholz's hesitation is seen there as giving in to Russia's aggressive President Vladimir Putin: "If Putin coughs, Scholz immediately looks for a bunker," a Macron advisor is said to have said after the German Chancellor's Taurus no, according to a report in the
Berliner Morgenpost
.
Not only Germany, but also many other countries quickly rejected Macron's mind games.
Most European states said that deploying NATO soldiers in Ukraine is not up for debate.
It is more important to deliver ammunition.
But Macron did not let this irritate him: on Tuesday (February 5th) he reiterated his thoughts on ground troops.
Macron warns against being defensive in the Ukraine war – “Don’t be a coward”
During a visit to Prague, the Frenchman warned against an overly defensive view of the Ukraine war.
“We are certainly approaching a moment for Europe when it will be necessary not to be a coward,” he declared belligerently.
“If we explain every day what our limits are to someone who has none and who started this war, I can tell you that the spirit of defeat is creeping in,” said Macron.
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This can clearly be seen as a swipe at Scholz, who is drawing one red line after another in the Ukraine war.
First it was the tanks, now it's long-range cruise missiles, like the German Taurus rockets.
Macron also defended his statement about ground troops from the week before: “I think it is absolutely necessary that we declare that we will not impose any restrictions on ourselves.” But he also emphasized that he does not want any escalation.
After Macron's statement about Western troops in Ukraine, the French government made it clear that this did not mean combat units for the front.
Pistorius rejects Macron’s allegations about Ukraine – “No discussion about courage”
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) dismissed Macron's comments as “unhelpful”.
"This doesn't really help solve the problems we have in supporting Ukraine as best we can," he said on Tuesday (Feb 5) during a visit to Sweden.
“In my view, we don’t need discussions about the use of ground troops or about more or less courage,” he said.
It’s “about focusing on the most relevant challenges.”
This is the rapid replenishment of ammunition for artillery and air defense systems.
The German-French disagreements may also have played a role in the meeting between Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) and her French colleague Stéphane Séjourné in Paris.
Nevertheless, Baerbock wrote after the meeting on the portal X (formerly Twitter): “United and determined: together we are strong.” (
smu
)