Macron unveils France-UK peace plan for Ukraine war resolution
In an interview with Le Figaro, French President Emmanuel Macron disclosed a new peace initiative co-developed with the UK aimed at resolving the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
The France-UK proposal suggests a month-long partial ceasefire. This truce would cover air and naval assaults, as well as attacks on energy infrastructure, while excluding ground combat. Macron stated the difficulty in enforcing a ceasefire along the front lines, calling verification "very challenging."
A further step in the plan is the eventual deployment of European peacekeeping forces to Ukraine, but this would occur at a later stage. "European troops will not be present in Ukraine in the coming weeks. The question is, how do we use the ceasefire time to attempt negotiations that could take weeks, leading to a peace agreement and the subsequent troop deployment," Macron explained.
Macron didn't stop there. He urged European nations to bolster their defense spending, pointing out: "Russians allocate 10% of their GDP to defense. We should aim for a target between 3% to 3.5%. France struggles to even meet the 2% mark, a threshold many European countries are far from achieving."
In response to questions about the France-UK peace proposal, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted being "fully aware" of the discussions.
Over the weekend, Zelensky met with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and King Charles III. Starmer reassured that London would support Kyiv "as long as it takes." He also promised Ukraine £1.6 billion (approximately €1.9 billion) in British export financing to procure over 5,000 air defense missiles.