French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday announced he would discuss extending France’s nuclear deterrent to European partners and raised the possibility of sending European troops to Ukraine to enforce a peace deal, as Europe scrambles to respond to Donald Trump’s upending of the transatlantic alliance.
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In an address to the nation, Macron said that the French were “legitimately worried” about the start of a “new era” after Trump began his second stint in the White House by reversing US policy on Ukraine and risking a historic rupture with Europe.
“I want to believe that the United States will stay by our side but we have to be prepared for that not to be the case,” he said bluntly.
Trump has made clear his desire to swiftly end the war caused by Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine through direct negotiations with Moscow.
But Macron offered a stark picture of Russia’s aggressive behaviour, which he said does “not seem to know borders” after its invasion of Ukraine.
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“Russia has become, at the moment I am speaking to you and for the years to come, a threat to France and Europe,” he said. “It would be madness to remain a spectator in this world of danger.”