“No US soldiers in Ukraine”
US government rejects Macron
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With his latest move to support Ukraine, France's president has faced rebuff from Washington. While Macron announces a mission of Western military trainers to the war zone, Biden's security chief declares that the US will not send any soldiers.
The US government does not plan to participate in French President Emmanuel Macron's initiative to send military trainers to Ukraine. The communications director of the National Security Council, John Kirby, said on the sidelines of a visit by US President Joe Biden to France that Biden respects Macron's stance. However, the US president has made it clear since the beginning of the war in Ukraine that he will not send American soldiers there. “That has been the case so far, and it will continue to be the case in the future,” stressed Kirby.
The US President is leaving it up to Macron to decide how much information he will make public on the subject and how much clarity he will provide. Biden, for his part, has made several points very clear since the war began. These include “that we do not want a Third World War here and we do not want a war with Russia.” Referring to Biden, Kirby stressed: “He has said again and again that an escalation of the conflict on this scale would not only be terrible for the Ukrainian people.” It would also have catastrophic consequences for the entire European continent and would not be in the interests of the United States. “The President has made no secret of that. And he will continue to make no secret of it.”
Macron: Does not want escalation with Russia
Ukraine has been defending itself against a Russian war of aggression for more than two years. Recently, there has been repeated discussion about the possible deployment of Western military trainers to the war zone in order to more effectively support the Ukrainian army, which is under pressure. According to Macron, France is consulting with partners about such a step. The French president said in the evening after a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj in Paris that several partners had already given their consent. Such a coalition should be finalized in the “coming days”. Macron also stressed at the same time that he did not want an escalation with Russia.
Macron will receive Biden as a state guest in the French capital on Saturday. The topic of Ukraine is at the top of the agenda for the meeting between the two. Biden has been in France since Wednesday and took part in celebrations to mark the landing of Allied troops in Normandy 80 years ago.
