French President Emmanuel Macron, in an interview with Le Parisien published Saturday, stated that Western ground operations in Ukraine may be necessary “at some point.” Last month, Macron did not rule out putting troops on the ground, prompting a stern response from Berlin and other European partners. Macron has not recanted from his position, emphasizing that Western allies would not take the initiative and that “France’s strength is that we can do it.”
Disagreements over ground operations and the delivery of long-range missiles to Kyiv had threatened cooperation between allies. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was angered by Macron’s refusal to rule out sending troops to Ukraine and comments urging allies not to be “cowards.” Macron, alongside his German and Polish counterparts, met in Berlin on Friday to show solidarity behind Kyiv. After the meeting, Macron stated the Weimar Triangle countries were “united” in their aim to “never let Russia win and to support the Ukrainian people until the end.”
