The French Government won an advisory vote this Tuesday – but politically very symbolic and important – in the National Assembly on the recent security agreement signed with Ukraine. There were 372 votes in favor, 99 against and 101 abstentions.
The debate took place against the background of President Macron's recent, very controversial statements, in which he did not exclude the sending of troops to prevent Russia's victory. What the Government wanted was for the parties to portray their support for Kyiv, for the true supporters and the defeatists to be clear.
In his introductory statement, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal insisted that France will not abandon Ukraine. “And we do not exclude any option on principle,” he added. Attal condemned “the cynical, brutal and destructive offensive” of Russia, decided by “nostalgic for the empire.” “Russia has committed barbaric war crimes,” he said. “Turning our backs on Ukraine would be turning our backs on our values,” continued the head of government. Attal warned that a Russian victory would have very serious consequences for the French, in terms of insecurity and inflation. He spoke of “cataclysm for purchasing power.” The premier ended his speech by exclaiming Slava Ukraini! (glory to Ukraine).
Rebellious France (LFI, radical left) and the communists voted against as they disagreed with the promise of unlimited aid to Kyiv, including troops, and Ukraine's entry into NATO. They did not want to give a blank check for a war escalation and asked for negotiation. Socialists and environmentalists, on the other hand, voted in favor, but with nuances such as their frontal opposition to sending troops.
The National Regroupment (RN, extreme right) opted to abstain. Its leader, Marine Le Pen, denounced a political exploitation of the international crisis for electoral purposes (in the European elections of June 9). Le Pen was implacable with Macron for his “warlike announcements” and recalled that his approach was rejected by all the capitals of the allied countries. “The best strategic ambiguity is silence,” he maliciously advised the president.
The dialectic in France and in the European countries that are experiencing the war in Ukraine with greater concern evokes the debate of 1938 regarding the Munich conference and the decision, which turned out to be dramatic, to try to appease Hitler. Mention of the Munich fiasco is increasingly frequent among analysts and some politicians. The head of the list of the Macronist party, Renaissance, Valérie Hayer, did it last Saturday at a rally in Lille.
