Macron angers Kyiv with talk of concessions

French president suggests Nato should offer security guarantees to Russia to end conflict in Ukraine

‘The idea of giving security guarantees to Russia is falling into the trap of Putin’s narrative’

VLADIMIR PUTIN needs “security guarantees” from the West in order for a peace deal to be negotiated in Ukraine, Emmanuel Macron has said provoking outrage from Kyiv.

In an interview with the French television station TF1 following his state visit to the United States, president Macron said his Russian counterpart remains worried about Nato expansion and this needs to be addressed as part of talks to end the war in Ukraine.

“This means that one of the essential points we must address – as president Putin has always said – is the fear that Nato comes right up to its doors and the deployment of weapons that could threaten Russia,” he said.

“That topic will be part of the topics for peace, so we need to prepare what we are ready to do, how we protect our allies and member states, and how to give guarantees to Russia the day it returns to the negotiating table.”

Kyiv immediately criticised the French president for advocating making concessions to the Kremlin.

“Someone wants to provide security guarantees to a terrorist and killer state?” said Oleksiy Danilov, president Volodymyr Zelensky’s national security chief.

Referring to the post-second World War tribunals, he added: “Instead of Nuremberg – to sign an agreement with Russia and shake hands?”

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said the “civilised world needs ‘security guarantees’ from the barbaric intentions of post-putin Russia”.

Ukraine rejects the suggestion that the Kremlin should be given any concessions ten months into the invasion.

Leaders in Kyiv similarly maintain negotiations will only be possible if and when Russia withdraws all of its troops.

David Arakhamia, chief Ukrainian negotiator in the early days of the war, said on the Telegram messaging service that in order for Ukraine to begin peace talks, Russia would need to “leave the territory of our country, pay reparations; punish all war criminals; voluntarily give up all nuclear weapons”.

Criticism for Mr Macron stretched beyond Kyiv with Alexander Stubb, the former prime minister of Finland, saying he “fundamentally” disagreed with the remarks.

“The only security guarantees we should focus on are essentially nonrussian,” he tweeted.

“Russia needs first to guarantee that it does not attack others.

“Only then can we begin discussions [on European security.]”

Artis Pabriks, Latvia’s deputy prime minister, yesterday told the Financial Times: “The idea that the Russian invasion of Ukraine can be ended by the West giving security guarantees to Russia is falling into the trap of Putin’s narrative that the West and Ukraine are responsible for this war and Russia is an innocent victim.”

Critics similarly lashed out against Mr Macron in June for stating that the West “should not humiliate Russia” over the war because it would still be a neighbour once the conflict was over.

Russia and the US have both said this week they are open to talks in principle, although President Joe Biden said he would only talk to Mr Putin if he showed he was interested in ending the war.

On Feb 8, just weeks before Russia’s invasion, Mr Putin outlined three security demands at a joint press conference with Mr Macron in Moscow.

He called for an end to Nato enlargements, no missile deployments near its borders and a scaling back of Nato’s military infrastructure in Europe to 1997 levels.

Washington said at the time that the Russian demands were “non-starters” and could not be contemplated.