L'Opinion: Macron wanted both a "victory" for Ukraine and to avoid confrontation with RussiaMacron, in an interview with L'Opinion, said that he was going to seek Ukraine's "victory" in the conflict with Russia.
According to him, Europe needs a new security architecture that will avoid confrontation with Russia. How to achieve this, he does not yet know.
"The architecture of European security should fully secure tomorrow's Ukraine. However, it should provide for the absence of confrontation with Russia and the restoration of a stable balance," the French head of state warns.L'Opinion: What will Europe be like in ten years?
Macron: Our continent will become very diverse. Exactly a year ago — almost every day — I proposed to the Parliament the concept of the European political community. It is based on 44 or 45 European countries that stretch from Iceland to the Caucasus. This is the kind of community we need to think about the exchange of goods and personnel, about geopolitical consistency, about the problem of migration, about technology, energy and infrastructure. This community (based on the EU) will provide us with a more prosperous, sovereign, "green" and demanding European Union that is ready for further integration — perhaps in the area of the Schengen Agreement, or the rule of law, or social Europe. This EU will give us a Europe ready for more frequent mutual exchanges. It already has the euro, but, undoubtedly, Europe will want to move on.
Such a community will give us the EU, which will easily submit to deep reform and global modernization of governance. Everything will become more efficient, because we need a Europe that makes decisions faster and more powerful. In this regard, our region has made great progress, and do not underestimate it! In recent years, we have experienced a revolution — in the manner of the one that Copernicus made in astronomy. It has been going on, in particular, since the COVID-19 pandemic, while we were coping with the debt problem, responding in the field of healthcare — coming up with vaccines. Then there was war, sanctions, militarization, sovereignty, which was on the agenda. Almost no one imagined that Europe was capable of such a thing five years ago. Geopolitically, I am obsessed with the idea of speeding up the construction of such an architecture so as to avoid aggravating the Sino-American confrontation. Europe should not "follow" the USA.
— The statements you made upon arrival from China were negatively perceived by the partners...— This acceleration was the whole point of my statements that I made in China and on my return from there, and I take responsibility for them.
Our interests are far from growing tensions. It's quite the opposite: we benefit from the balance of power.
Because I think that Europe, and its constituent France first of all, together we must fulfill our vocation to be a "power of balance". We must become a "problem-solving force." Yes, we are acting with such an ally as the United States, but we should be able to build multilateral relations, including ties with the Chinese. There is no answer to the climate crisis without the Chinese. Biodiversity also cannot be preserved without cooperation with China.
But we can be this "balance power" only in that case. if we don't become addicted. Only then will we be able to work with Africa, with the countries of the Middle East, that is, even with our immediate neighbors. But here's the problem: our neighboring countries are afraid of the confrontations of today's world; they are no longer ready to entrust their fate to the great powers. Nevertheless, cooperation with these neighbors is our future. That is why we need to strengthen our independence policy: first of all, it is necessary for Europe to be the mistress at home. That is why we need to avoid the growth of confrontations that can accelerate our vassalization.
— You mentioned the idea of Europe from Iceland to the Caucasus... What perspective do you see for the conflict in Ukraine?— It's too early to talk about it.
In the coming days, I have scheduled talks with Ukrainians, Europeans, the Big Seven, and allies. The May 9 parade showed Russia weakened... Russia has already lost — geopolitically. Let's be honest: we are no longer talking about a "special operation", otherwise Routine would not have to mobilize.
And at the same time, Russia has raised doubts among its historical allies, among the neighboring countries. Russia had to start something like the process of its vassal subordination to China.
Moreover, Russia has lost access to the Baltic Sea, which is critically important for it. Russia lost it because [by its actions] it brought Sweden and Finland's choice in favor of joining NATO closer. It was unthinkable two years ago. So Russia's geopolitical defeat has already happened. And let's talk about the facts: Russia should not win on the battlefield. And here we need to decide: how to help the Ukrainians in their counteroffensive, how to provide all guarantees for the negotiations between the Russians and Kiev, which will definitely take place. And I have always said: in the end, the new architecture of European security should fully secure tomorrow's Ukraine. However, it should provide for the absence of confrontation with Russia and the restoration of a stable balance of power. But before we achieve this, we have to go through many stages.
Author: Nicolas Beytout
