President Emmanuel Macron said in a prime-time address to France on Wednesday night that Europe must be prepared to go it alone in defending Ukraine, without further assistance from the United States under the Trump administration.
“I want to believe that the U.S. will stand by our side, but we have to be ready for that not to be the case,” Macron said from the Élysée Palace in Paris.
He continued, “Whether we reach peace in Ukraine soon or not, we need to be able to recognize the Russian threat and better defend ourselves in order to deter such attacks. Whatever happens, we need to provide ourselves with more arms, more equipment in terms of defense, to provide a dissuasive force.”
Macron warned that Ukraine cannot be abandoned in its fight against Russia because, he said: “Who can believe that in this context, Russia will stop at Ukraine? Russia has become, and will remain, a threat to France and Europe.”
The French president made clear that France and other European countries must take concrete steps, including investing in defense and military capabilities, to protect the security of their nations and Ukraine’s.
“To remain a spectator in this dangerous world would be crazy,” Macron said. “The initiatives for peace are going in the right direction, and I welcome them, and we need to continue to help Ukrainians resist until they can negotiate with Russia a solid and lasting peace for themselves and for all of us. The path to peace cannot be achieved by abandoning Ukraine.”
Macron reiterated remarks made by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the weekend at a defense summit in London that Europe may have to put boots on the ground in Ukraine.
“Our forces will be there if necessary to guarantee peace, not before a peace agreement is signed,” Macron said Wednesday. “We will continue to meet with allies to move toward the signing of such an agreement. It’s a plan for a lasting, solid, verifiable peace agreement, which we’re working on with European partners and Ukraine.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on X that he was grateful for Macron’s “clear vision and our joint efforts to achieve peace.”
“Peace must be real, not just a word—it cannot mean Ukraine’s capitulation or collapse. It must be just, reliable, and lasting, and this can only be achieved through strong and long-term security guarantees — for Ukraine, Europe, and the entire world,” Zelenskyy said.
Macron and Starmer have teamed up in a desperate attempt to heal American-Ukraine ties after last Friday’s extraordinary shouting match at the White House involving Zelenskyy, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance. Both Starmer and Macron have sought to balance their yearslong outspoken support for Zelenskyy with the need to retain good relations with the United States.
Teeing up his speech, Macron said on X that it came in a “moment of great uncertainty, when the world is facing its greatest challenges.” Starmer told British lawmakers Wednesday that he had spoken with Trump three times since he visited the White House last week.
This Anglo-French mission has at times appeared onerous.
After the Oval Office spat, Trump continued to berate Zelenskyy on social media, with the president and some of his team suggesting that Ukraine’s leader could or should be ousted from office. The administration then paused aid to Ukraine, a vital lifeline holding back the Kremlin war machine.
The aid freeze is a serious blow not just to Ukraine, whose biggest military backer is the U.S., but also Europe, which is years away from being able to defend itself against Russia without Washington.
Things shifted Tuesday when Trump said during his joint address to Congress that he had received “an important letter” from Zelenskyy stating the Ukrainian president’s desire for peace and his gratitude for U.S. support.
Zelenskyy confirmed the thrust of this missive in an X post on Tuesday, calling the White House clash “regrettable,” thanking Trump’s team and saying he was ready to sign a deal giving Washington access to Ukraine’s rich mineral wealth.
Still, there is much to resolve.
Ukraine is reluctant to sign a ceasefire without “security guarantees” — meaning protection from Europe and the U.S. against Russia violating the truce, as it has done before.
Supporters and independent analysts worry that a ceasefire would allow Russia to regroup — as well as showing Russian President Vladimir Putin that attacking a European country is not only permitted, but rewarded.
Zelenskyy once stood firm in demanding these security guarantees. But now facing pressure from Moscow and Washington, he suggested on X that he would accept a minerals deal that was merely a looser “step toward” such promises.
