French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday that Europe and the United States should pressure Russia to accept a proposed ceasefire in Ukraine.
Russia "does not give the impression that it sincerely wants peace," Macron said in a statement to AFP after a Saturday morning video conference of countries supporting Ukraine, hosted by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
On the contrary, Russian President Vladimir Putin is "escalating the fighting" and "will take everything, then negotiate," he said.
"Russia must respond clearly and the pressure must be clear, in cooperation with the United States, to achieve this ceasefire," he added.
Macron will meet with Canada's new Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday to discuss the war in Ukraine and "other international crises."
Since returning to the White House in January, US President Donald Trump has stressed his desire to end the three-year conflict and has made a spectacular rapprochement with Vladimir Putin.
After a highly public row between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House last month, Kiev has worked to restore relations. It has backed Washington's proposal for a 30-day ceasefire, which Russia has rejected.
"This is a moment of truth, because if Russia does not sincerely commit to peace, President Trump will tighten sanctions and retaliation, and so this will completely change the dynamic," Macron said in an interview Friday with French regional newspapers that was posted late Saturday.
He said planning was accelerating among countries willing to provide security guarantees for Ukraine after any eventual ceasefire, such as France and Britain.
Military leaders from about 30 countries met in Paris on March 11 to discuss plans for a peacekeeping force in Ukraine and will meet again on Thursday in Britain.
"Some European countries, and indeed non-European ones, have expressed their willingness to join" a possible deployment in Ukraine to secure a future peace agreement with Russia, Macron said.
This will include "several thousand troops" per country, deployed at key points, to conduct training programs and "show our long-term support", he told regional newspapers.
Moscow has firmly opposed such a deployment.
But Macron said: “If Ukraine asks for allied forces to be on its territory, it is not up to Russia to accept or reject them.
He added: "Under no circumstances can Ukrainians make territorial concessions without any security guarantees."
Macron will travel to Berlin on Tuesday for talks with Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Ukraine ahead of an EU summit, Berlin has announced.
(AA/BalkanWeb)
