William Molinié, edited by Ugo Pascolo
modified to
09:58, April 13, 2022
“Trying to explain to assassins that it’s wrong to kill people.” This is the definition of a new verb that appeared a few weeks ago in the Ukrainian vocabulary: “macroner”. A word that alone sums up Emmanuel Macron’s collapse in popularity in the lands attacked by Vladimir Putin.
Between hesitations and false promises from Paris in the face of President Volodymyr Zelensky, “we are very disappointed”, bitter coward at the microphone of Europe 1 Valery Zukin, a well-known Ukrainian doctor and local genetics specialist.
“The French should remember their brave ancestors”
“French society must understand that at this moment Ukrainian soldiers are not only defending Ukraine, but all the values of civilization. And if the Russians do not stop in Ukraine, they will go to the west! They could even reach Paris,” he said. Ironically, when the war started 49 days ago, Valery Zukin was finishing reading the Memoirs of General de Gaulle…
And to add: “The French should remember their courageous ancestors. You must never show the Russians that you are afraid. It’s like with hungry dogs, if they feel that you are afraid, they bite you. “
Not tough enough on economic sanctions, too weak on arms supply…
Yet Emmanuel Macron was popular at the start of the war, but the tipping point came in early March. Not hard enough on economic sanctions, too weak on the supply of armaments… The French head of state is criticized for having chosen to keep the discussion open with Vladimir Poutine. A reproach shared in particular by the Polish Prime Minister.
The latter had indeed declared: “We do not debate, we do not negotiate with criminals, criminals must be fought. […] No one negotiated with Hitler. Would you negotiate with Hitler, with Stalin, with Pol Pot”. Faced with these criticisms, Emmanuel Macron had to react by calling them “scandalous”.
However, “it is important for Ukraine that Macron remains the president”, slips at the microphone of Europe 1 Stepan, 25 years old. “Le Pen she had a very pro-Russian position. It would obviously be more difficult to receive support from her.”
“BoJo” is on the rise in kyiv
And if it is better that Emmanuel Macron remains president according to the Ukrainians, he is far from being the most popular Western leader. In kyiv, this title goes to … Boris Johnson. Last weekend, the head of the British government made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital to announce new military aid.
Finally, the ultimate sign of the disappointment engendered by the French position, no media in France has so far managed to land an exclusive interview with the president, however very media-friendly, Volodymyr Zelensky.