Emmanuel Macron urges Ukraine’s allies not to be ‘cowards’
- The French president says he stands behind his controversial remarks about not ruling out sending Western troops to aid Kyiv
- Germany’s defence minister said Macron’s comments were not helpful, and discussions about boots on the ground or ‘courage’ were not needed
French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday urged Ukraine’s allies not to be “cowards” in supporting the country to fight off the Russian invasion.
He added that he “fully stood behind” controversial remarks made last week not ruling out the deployment of Western troops to Ukraine, which sent a shock wave around Europe.
“We are surely approaching a moment for Europe in which it will be necessary not to be cowards,” Macron said on a visit to the Czech Republic, which is pushing a plan to buy weapons outside Europe for Ukraine.
Speaking later after meeting his Czech counterpart Petr Pavel, he asked: “Is this or is it not our war? Can we look away in the belief that we can let things run their course?”
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“I don’t believe so, and therefore I called for a strategic surge and I fully stand behind that,” Macron said.