As France's legislative elections created uncertainty over the shape of the next government, President Emmanuel Macron assured NATO allies and Ukraine behind closed doors in Washington that Paris remains committed to Europe's security, UNN reports, citing Euractiv.
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"I have confirmed to all [NATO] allies that France will maintain the line in Europe, in the Alliance and in its support for Ukraine, because the political forces that make up the majority in the National Assembly are in favor of this line," Macron told reporters after the summit.
"None of those who have questioned these lines have a majority," he added, referring to the far-right National Union,
"I have reassured the allies," Macron said during his brief trip to Washington, just two days after the results of France's snap election left many questioning Paris' future commitment, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Macron called for early parliamentary elections in early June after the far-right National Rally party won three times as many seats in the European elections as his EU electoral list.
On the eve of the election, polls predicted that the far-right would win a majority of seats in the country's National Assembly, raising fears that the party would be able to claim the post of prime minister.
However, due to the lack of a clear majority for Macron, the left-wing alliance, and the far-right, the results have brought the political situation in France to a standstill, and its allies do not understand what to expect from the country's defense and foreign policy, the publication notes.
On the eve of the NATO summit and a few days after the final election results, Macron wrote a letter to the French public in which he "called on all political forces that recognize themselves in republican institutions, the rule of law, parliamentarism, European orientation and the defense of France's independence to engage in a sincere and loyal dialogue to build a strong, necessarily pluralist majority for the country.
Euractiv understands that the letter was deliberately published on the eve of the NATO summit, suggesting an encouraging move that the country will not radically change its position.
"I did not feel anxious among my colleagues; I felt relieved," Macron told reporters after the summit.
"This is because they understood that the risk of seeing [the arrival in France] of a political formation that would question France's presence in NATO's integrated command and support for Ukraine would make it difficult to [respect] the decision that had already been made," he said, reportedly referring to the National Rally.
Macron, however, refused to comment on the candidacy of the future prime minister and the question of whether she will be from the far-left France Insoumise party, which is part of the leftist coalition that won the majority of seats in the snap election.
Зеленський і Макрон на саміті НАТО обговорили наступний оборонний пакет12.07.24, 09:39
Internationally, France is leading a coalition to buy and coordinate long-range weapons and missiles to supply Ukraine, has promised Mirage fighter jets and sent 2,000 troops to the Baltic states and Romania to strengthen the eastern flank of the alliance, the newspaper notes.
During bilateral high-level talks with his counterparts, Macron "said that France today has all the means to reaffirm its commitment to Ukraine and its allies," a French diplomatic source told Euractiv.
In an official speech to his colleagues at a closed-door meeting, Macron "concluded by saying that the French have made a choice to exclude extremist parties that could challenge France's commitment to Ukraine or within the Alliance," they added.
"France has a strong president who is active in the international arena. Yesterday I had a very good conversation with my friend Emmanuel Macron, so I'm not interested in what will happen," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told reporters after bilateral talks with his French counterpart on Wednesday.
"France will be a great partner on the international agenda, a strong partner for all of us, and especially a partner for Germany," Scholz told reporters earlier this week.
In Washington, Macron met with several other NATO leaders, including the newly elected Dutch Prime Minister Dirk Schof and his British counterpart, Keir Starmer.
As a sign of its desire to increase defense production of long-range missiles and support Ukraine, France, along with Germany, Italy, and Poland, launched the ELSA initiative to develop, produce, and supply these weapons.