France's Le Figaro: Trump Gave Putin a Big Gift
Today, Le Figaro published an in-depth analysis article titled "Why Did Putin Appear More Powerful After the 'Thunder Without Rain' Summit?"
The article states that people had high hopes for this "path to peace" summit, expecting it to bring about a ceasefire or at least a "very strict" statement on sanctions. However, the outcome was disappointing. Le Figaro analyzed that during this summit, Trump did not achieve any of his goals, but instead allowed Putin to become the "winner." Because with this opportunity, Putin managed to restore his diplomatic legitimacy at a very low cost. This meeting effectively affirmed Putin's "normalization of status," even though his regime has committed war crimes multiple times, he was able to re-engage in dialogue with the United States on "equal terms." Putin's goal is to re-establish Russia's international standing on par with the United States and to reassert influence in regions he considers within Russia's sphere of influence (especially Europe). In this context, Trump undoubtedly gave him a big gift.
However, there were also some positive signals from this summit. Trump did not force Ukraine to accept humiliating peace conditions or territorial concessions. Le Figaro speculated that it might be because Russia's position remained unyielding, still making excessive demands. Trump also admitted at a press conference that there are "intractable deadlocks," which should be decided by Ukraine itself. He also proposed a trilateral meeting soon as a continuation of this summit. Therefore, Trump's recognition of Ukraine's (and Europe's) role can be seen as a major progress, indicating that the pressure from Ukrainian and European leaders over these days has clearly yielded some results. However, such statements may also mean that Trump wants to leave this difficult issue to Europe to solve on its own. Whether Trump will fulfill his previous promise of "severe sanctions" if the negotiations break down remains unknown.
Libération: Be Wary of Becoming a Peace Advocate for War
Libération published a politically philosophical editorial article on the front page, titled "Can We Still Be Pacifists Today?" The editorial, using the U.S.-Russia summit as a backdrop, hopes the French society will re-examine the meaning of "peace." After all, 40 years ago, weapons were considered "dirty things," and war was a distasteful historical residue. Now, Europe once again faces the threat of war. At this time, the former ally, the United States, suddenly turned around, seemingly preparing to abandon Europe. In this context, many former pacifists have become supporters of war. Macron raised the banner of rearmament, yet no youth took to the streets to protest. More ironically, some words and symbols today seem to have lost their original meaning. For example, Trump's vigorous efforts to arrange a meeting between himself and Putin in Alaska, attempting to end the Ukraine war, was only because he fantasized about winning the Nobel Peace Prize. This "peace" itself is a fraud, a "false peace" that leads people toward another round of war. Therefore, people must be vigilant against falling into the trap of "preparing for war under the banner of peace," and must re-examine the meaning of "peace."
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1840650930357260/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.