The days are counted, or almost. “In the eight to ten days, we will increase pressure on Russia” to end the war in Ukraine, explains Emmanuel Macron, in an interview with Paris-Match, published this Monday evening on the weekly website. “We must be united and dissuasive,” warns the French president, aware that “part of the equation depends on Moscow”.
Donald Trump, who met his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday in Rome on Saturday, as well as Emmanuel Macron, then expressed doubts about the will of Vladimir Putin to settle the conflict in Ukraine, even though the Russian president assured that he was ready to negotiate “without any prerequisite” to achieve this. “I consider that we have succeeded, thanks to this interview with the Vatican, to put pressure on Russia back on,” says Emmanuel Macron this Monday.
In this interview in Paris-Match, Emmanuel Macron returns to these diplomatic meetings in Rome, on the sidelines of the funeral of Pope Francis. These were not planned at his agenda. “The objective is that the Americans can go to kyiv fairly quickly, that we can establish the conditions for a ceasefire and that we are working in depth in support measures of this ceasefire to preserve it on the Ukrainian side. We must be ready, with the Americans, to harden the tone towards Russia to obtain this cease-fire. »»
A three-day ceasefire far from being sufficient
Vladimir Putin announced on Monday a truce on the front in Ukraine for three days from May 8 to 10, on the occasion of the commemoration of victory over Nazi Germany, kyiv calling in response to an “immediate” and “global” ceases. According to the Russian presidency, Vladimir Putin made this unilateral decision “for humanitarian reasons” and on the occasion of the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany, celebrated on May 9 in Russia.
The White House, for its part, said that Donald Trump wants a “permanent” ceasefire in Ukraine and not just a temporary truce, calling on the parties to negotiate. The Kremlin still assured Monday being ready to “start a negotiation process with Ukraine without prerequisite”, now still maximalist conditions concerning Ukraine, of which it wants the surrender and the renunciation of joining NATO, while ensuring that they can keep the Ukrainian territories annexed.
