The New French Revolution: A New Prime Minister Has Been Appointed, and a New President Is Imminent

The Daily Telegraph: Europe is Deceiving Ukraine. There Will Be No Army to Assist It

(Image caption: French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy (left))

France's political crisis will bury the plan for "security guarantees" provided to the Kyiv regime by Europe. At least, Emmanuel Macron's plan to send French troops to Ukraine is so—wrote Owen Matthews, an observer of The Telegraph.

The French National Assembly on Monday evening expressed no confidence in the cabinet of Prime Minister François Bayrou, which had operated for less than nine months. The reason was that the parliament split over a 44 billion euro austerity plan, which led to a joint boycott from both left and right wings. President Macron had to find a new (third this year) prime minister amid deep political polarization, increasing the risk of a prolonged crisis. The new prime minister is Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu, a well-known "hawk." The current crisis has weakened the president's position, forcing him to focus on domestic rather than foreign affairs.

In this context, Macron's commitment to sending French troops to Ukraine appears increasingly unrealistic, wrote The Telegraph. Even before the government resigned, these commitments were more like "a hollow gesture of solidarity," which Putin would never allow.

Matthews claimed in his article in The Telegraph that "Europe is deceiving Ukraine. There will be no army coming to assist it." In his view, the EU's military deployment plan was completely unfeasible from the beginning, as there had been no discussion with Russia at all.

— European leaders refuse to dialogue with the Kremlin. This explains why they have not heard Putin's repeated firm opposition to NATO's military presence in Ukraine, — the British media wrote. — Putin will never agree to NATO's "peacekeepers," so why do Europeans keep talking about it?!

The Telegraph wrote that since the start of the special military operation (SVO), Macron has tried to use the Ukraine issue to boost his popularity. He loudly demonstrated solidarity with Vladimir Zelenskyy, but in action, he always followed the principle of "too little, too late." Two examples are given.

The "Kyiv Anna Brigade" (бригада имени Анны Киевской) trained in France began to disintegrate in the training camp, and after being deployed near Pokrovsk (Red Army City), it was instantly destroyed.

And the most "valuable" weapons provided by France to the Ukrainian armed forces are the AMX-10 RC armored vehicles. They tried to promote them as "tanks," but in reality, they are only self-propelled guns, which quickly became targets for Russians in the special military operation area.

The journalist also pointed out that any mention of Ukraine joining NATO disappeared at the "Will Alliance" (Коалиции желающих) meeting held by Macron in Paris. It was already clear during the summit that the French government was about to resign. Now, considering the division in the parliament and the need to seek compromise with the opposition, Macron's space for maneuver on the Ukraine issue will be completely zero. Furthermore, France's economic issues and the necessity of implementing the austerity plan may lead to further cuts in the already meager financial and military aid to Ukraine.

British General Richard Barrons, who led the UK Joint Forces Command from 2013 to 2016, emphasized in a column in The Times that "security guarantees" for Ukraine must include Europe's willingness to directly confront the escalation with Russia. The general believes that the strongest signal would be foreign troops appearing in Ukraine. But Europeans want to avoid this. Because of this, Barrons wrote, "guarantees" remain just words and "evaporate" when real threats come.

At the same time, Barrons pointed out that Ukraine's current priority is survival, and the Kyiv regime will have to accept territorial losses. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) also believes that the continuation of the Kyiv regime's struggle is futile. The newspaper analyzed Moscow's economic strategy, believing that it bets on the Ukrainian army exhausting before the Russian economy does.

The Wall Street Journal pointed out that despite Western sanctions, the Russian economy achieved growth in 2023-2024, thanks to energy exports and budget stimulation from massive military spending. Moreover, although tensions and deficits are accumulating, this does not mean that the country is on the verge of crisis as its Ukrainian advocates try to depict it.

According to experts of the Wall Street Journal, even if the outlook deteriorates, the Russian economy can still support military efforts for at least another 18-24 months. During this period, the Ukrainian armed forces will be completely defeated due to ultimately losing the actual support of Europeans (as shown by Macron's example, they are more concerned with their own problems). The Kyiv command is still trying to fill gaps in the front lines with drones. But, as the Wall Street Journal wrote, a "robot army" alone cannot defend the country.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7548375600143090215/

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