that the French president told reporters
On the evening of May 13, French President Emmanuel Macron took part in the program on the TF1 TV channel entitled “Calls standing before France”, answering questions from journalists, politicians and bloggers within three hours. This communication and reaction was observed by Kommersant correspondent in France Alexey Tarkhanov.
The conversation began with a topic that did not converge from the first lanes – the war in Ukraine and a possible meeting at the top on Thursday, May 15, in Istanbul between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky. Emmanuel Macron mentioned that the US leader Donald Trump, who is on a visit to the Middle East, may join them. The president said that he did not have information about the arrival or absence of Vladimir Putin, but reminded of the common goal of European countries: to achieve « a ceasefire on land, in the air and at sea for a period of 30 days to be able to discuss the issue of territories and security guarantees. »
For the first time, the French president also sounded in the speech that Ukrainians show “sobriety”, realizing that it is impossible to return all territories and restore the border of 2014 with Russia.
Mr. Macron also confirmed Europe’s readiness to introduce new sanctions against Russia if President Putin refuses to observe the proposed truce. Since Moscow has already responded to Europeans’ proposals, calling the Ultimatumi unacceptable language, the French president promised new restrictive measures “in close coordination with the United States”, including possible secondary sanctions regarding the resale of oil, gas or financial services.
However, he noted that we should not expect changes in the long -discussed issue of confiscation and the use of Russian assets frozen in the West, referring to the lack of a legal framework and calling such a measure “not the best decision”. At the same time, Emmanuel Macron emphasized the limits of the possible participation of Europe: “We must help Ukraine defend ourselves, but we do not want to unleash the third world war.”
From assistance to Ukraine, the president moved to the task of re -equipping European countries due to the strengthening of the « threat from the East. » Particular attention was attracted by Mr. Macron’s statement about the readiness of France to discuss the placement of their aircraft, nuclear weapons, on the territory of other European states, following the example of the American model of the “nuclear umbrella”. He emphasized: « There was always a European aspect in nuclear deterrence, but we intentionally not go into details. »
At the same time, he outlined Three clear conditions for such a joint use of the national nuclear shield.
- France « will not pay for the safety of others. »
- Placement should not occur to the detriment of its own defense capacity.
- The final decision on the use of nuclear weapons will always remain with the president of the republic as commander in chief.
The air, which collected 4.9 million spectators, was an attempt by the head of state to regain a connection with the French against the backdrop of a tense international and internal agenda. In the conditions of the separation of the Society and Parliament, Emmanuel Macron was quite predictably criticized both on the right and on the left: the right ones did not satisfy his answers, the left – others.
Recall that after the president’s unexpected visit to Kyiv, Marin Le Pen had already reproached him for “getting used to the role of a warrior”. “I don’t understand what this coalition is striving for. Does she want peace or pushing to war? “She asked a question.” I have the impression that for many months Emmanuel Macron has been preparing not for the world, but for war. ”
Politicians on the left also could not resist riding and criticism, noting both too general phrases and obscure formulations, as well as the absence of specific solutions. The left leader of the “frightened France” by Jean-Luke Melanshon on his page in X wrote: “I have not missed anything. He said nothing, did not offer anything. » Other representatives of the left -wing camp spoke in the same spirit, including the head of the Socialists Olivier Fora and the head of ecologists Marin Tondle.
The right ones who might like Mr. Macron’s proposals for safety and curric curric (the president proposed to increase the powers of the municipal police and even rent places in foreign prisons for those who deserved such places) expressed disappointment with the lack of a promise to hold a referendum on the issue of immigration. Answering this question acute for all Frenchmen, Emmanuel Macron recalled: such a topic is not included in the list provided for in Article 11 of the Constitution, which allows you to issue questions for a popular vote. This did not surprise his right -wing opponents.
The leader of the National Association Zordan Bardell described the ether as “empty chatter, which can no longer hide the general impotence,” adding: “Even the referendum announcement did not sound in order to somehow increase interest in this useless speech.”
The president was expected to recognize the importance of referendums, but he refused to make both pension reform and budget issues for general voting. The left Muslim circles were furious from the fact that he refused to talk about “genocide in gas”, the right – from the lack of condemnation of Palestinian terrorism. This time, the president’s attempt to demonstrate leadership and clarify his position on the most important issues was met with obvious skepticism – both in political circles and in public opinion.
When it came to the future of Mr. Macron himself, journalists asked him about the presidential election of 2032 and the possible related ambitions of a young politician. He replied that he had not yet thought about it, concentrating on the tasks of the current presidential term: “When I finish, I can answer, but now there is no.” Emmanuel Macron recalled that the Constitution does not give him the right to run for the third time, and therefore considers it senseless to bargain about the following elections. “I am the first president in our history, who has no right to re -elect the Constitution,” the head of the Champs Elysees recalled. And he emphasized: “Every day I think only about one thing – about our country,” promising “to fight for it until the very end”.
