Received by Macron, the oppositions denounce his position on Ukraine

Emmanuel Macron welcomed party leaders on Thursday to discuss the conflict in Ukraine ahead of a parliamentary vote which promises to be tumultuous, with the oppositions having unanimously denounced the conflict in Ukraine. the "irresponsible" from the president on the possibility of to send soldiers into the field.

“I invite him to be a little more measured”, declared the coordinator of La France insoumise Manuel Bompard to the press upon his arrival at the Elysée, deploring a speech which had “discredited”, “isolated” and “weakened” France.

The boss of the socialists Olivier Faure accused the head of state of having achieved “the unity of all” the Westerners “against France” and offered “unprecedented clarity” to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the fact “that none of these countries wants to commit ground troops”.

“It’s really a problem of amateurism at this stage,” added the head of the Ecologists Marine Tondelier, referring to a “virilist declaration”.

The others Opponents had also made their disagreement known, like the president of the National Rally Jordan Bardella who considered that Emmanuel Macron had played “into the hands of the Kremlin” by “bringing Europe's divisions into broad daylight”.

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (l) during a press conference in The Hague, March 6, 2024 © ANP – Remko de Waal

The return of a divide over Ukraine, which had already been at the heart of the 2022 presidential election before fading, is assumed by the President of the Republic as the European elections approach of June.

“I think it will clarify” the positions, he said Tuesday on the sidelines of a trip to Prague. “It’s a moment of truth,” adds those around him, evoking cracks in the “unanimity” noted last summer on support for Kiev.

– “Not a Game Boy” –

Traveling to The Hague, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal once again accused the RN on Wednesday of “supporting Russia more than Ukraine”.

While the far-right list led by Jordan Bardella is well ahead in the polls, Emmanuel Macron asked his ministers on Wednesday to “fight step by step” in his camp's European campaign which will be launched on Saturday during 'a meeting in Lille.

“Don't let the nationalists in. They were already at war. They are now defeating Russia”, he said. he hammered in front of his government.

“We have a president who unfortunately as always plays”, to “instrumentalize the war” and “approach the European elections with the clothes of a war leader,” replied Olivier Faure. “It’s not a Game Boy, in fact, France,” he said indignantly.

The presidential camp hopes to plow this furrow through a series of meetings.

The president, who promised to go to Ukraine before mid-March, spoke on Wednesday at the Elysée with his predecessors François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy, just before the meeting this Thursday.

He must present behind closed doors to those responsible parties the results of the international conference to increase military support for Ukraine organized last week in Paris.

The French strategy will then be the subject of a debate, followed by a vote, in Parliament – Tuesday in the National Assembly, then Wednesday in the Senate.

However, this debate promises to be heated. Not so much on the subject of the bilateral security agreement signed in mid-February by Emmanuel Macron with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, on which the vote formally relates, but because of the recent declarations of the president, who also called on Western allies to not “be cowardly”, reinforcing Germany's ire.

If the Ecologists and the Socialist Party hesitate, the rest of the left leans towards frank opposition .

Former President François Hollande makes a statement to the press after his interview with President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysée, March 6, 2024 in Paris © AFP – Geoffroy VAN DER HASSELT

“For us, it's no. It is out of the question to deliver long-range missiles to Ukraine which would run the risk that France, tomorrow, becomes engaged against Russia”, said said communist leader Fabien Roussel. Manuel Bompard also explained that LFI will oppose the agreement submitted to Parliament if it “includes the prospect of Ukraine's accession to the European Union or NATO”.

A vote against other opposition parties could put the executive in a delicate position.

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