France explains Macron’s statement on sending troops to Ukraine

French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné explained that the troops of Western countries, if theoretically sent to Ukraine, as proposed by Emmanuel Macron the day before, would not take part in hostilities.

The French foreign minister explained during a speech in parliament that Paris “should consider new actions in support of Ukraine.” Séjourné’s statement was quoted by BFMTV.

Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné clarified President Emmanuel Macron’s comments on the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine. “Certain actions might require a presence on Ukrainian territory without crossing the belligerence threshold,” he said.

The presence of Western troops in Ukraine would not cross “the threshold of belligerence”, the head of French diplomacy assured, clarifying President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial remarks on the possibility of sending troops to the war-torn country.

Faced with Russia’s aggressiveness, the West had to “consider new actions in support of Ukraine”, reiterated Stéphane Séjourné, referring to operations such as mine clearance, cyber or “weapons production (…) on Ukrainian territory”.

“Some of these actions could require a presence on Ukrainian territory without crossing the threshold of belligerence”, he declared. So no troops to fight directly against the Russians.

“They must meet very specific needs, I mean, in particular, demining, cyber defense, weapons production on the ground, on Ukrainian territory. Some of these activities may require a presence on Ukrainian territory without crossing the line of hostilities. Nothing can be ruled out. This has been and remains the position of the President of the Republic today.”

Stéphane Séjourné, French Foreign Minister

After the meeting of EU leaders in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron allowed for the deployment of Western troops to Ukraine in the future, although he stressed that there is currently no consensus among the allies on this issue.

After Macron’s statement, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Sweden said they were not considering sending their troops to Ukraine. 

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the Alliance has no plans to send troops to Ukraine. The EU said that at the European level, there is a consensus among member states only to provide Ukraine with the necessary assistance for as long as it takes.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the appearance of NATO troops on the territory of Ukraine would lead to a direct conflict between the Alliance and Russia and an escalation of the situation.

In France, Macron’s statement sparked a heated debate and criticism from various political parties. The most outraged were the left-wing and right-wing radicals, who are known for their pro-Russian stance. Some politicians said that sending the French military could lead to a Russian nuclear strike on France.