The French president, Emmanuel Macron, warned that Russia’s war against Ukraine would not end “tomorrow or the day after” as Donald Trump, who pledged to quickly wind up the conflict, returned to the White House.
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Trump promised over the summer to end Russia’s war against Ukraine “in 24 hours”, although he did not explain how he planned to do that. “Let us not delude ourselves,” Macron said in his new year’s address to the French armed forces. “This conflict will not end tomorrow or the day after.” The third anniversary of Russia’s war against Ukraine approaches next month, and Trump’s administration has more recently been suggesting a timeline of several months to end it.
- Macron also called on Europe to “wake up” and spend more on defence in order to reduce its reliance on the US. Macron said expected changes in Washington’s foreign policy, especially regarding the war in Ukraine, were an “opportunity for a European strategic wake-up call”. “What will we do in Europe tomorrow if our American ally withdraws its warships from the Mediterranean? If they send their fighter jets from the Atlantic to the Pacific?” he asked. “The answer will have to come from us.”