Alexandre Bozio
modified to
11:49 a.m., March 3, 2024
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs Hubert Védrine was the guest of the Grand Rendez-vous Europe 1/ CNews/ Les Echos. At Sonia Mabrouk’s microphone, he notably returned to the war in Ukraine, emphasizing the importance of not abandoning the Ukrainian troops. “We must re-involve the United States,” he also assured.
It was an announcement that resonated throughout Europe. While Kiev continues to lose ground against Russia, Emmanuel Macron recently called on Ukraine’s allies for a “start” to ensure the “defeat” of Moscow, while refusing to exclude, for the first time since the start of the war, the option of sending Western troops. Questioned on this subject this Sunday morning, Hubert Védrine, Minister of Foreign Affairs under the Jospin government, believes that this announcement had an objective: to serve as an electric shock. “The general idea is that we cannot passively wait for Ukraine to collapse. That’s the urgency.”
The major role of the United States
For the former spokesperson for President Mitterrand, it is crucial that Western powers begin to imagine different scenarios. “Whatever the reasons, the motivations and the circumstances, the question posed cannot be brushed aside. What do we do if Ukraine is on the verge of breaking down?” he asked on the set of Grand Rendez-vous Europe 1/ CNews/ Les Echos. “This question will move forward and I would like it to not only move through the minds of Europeans, but that it sends us back to Washington.”
Indeed, the United States must fulfill its “role as leader of the alliance”, argues Hubert Védrine, estimating that European countries, even better organized and better aligned, will not be enough to ensure the survival of the Ukrainian army. “There is no reason to act as European masochists, (…) nor to excuse the Americans.”
Even if American foreign policy also risks changing with future elections and the possible return of Donald Trump to the White House as well as the blockage in Congress vis-à-vis Joe Biden, it is imperative to add up “the demonstration of European will, better prepared than the time before, and of American determination”, to make the Russian power think. “Putin, he is waiting for the American reaction. If we manage to re-engage the Americans and the whole alliance says yes, we will prevent Putin from winning in Ukraine”, then military aid to Kiev will be able to resume more concretely.