Macron floats EU security pact with Russia, risking western split over Ukraine ( https://www.ft.com/content/0db12864-a154-4607-a0e8-c9722e956424 )
French president Emmanuel Macron called on the EU to forge its own plan for “security and stability” with Russia, in a move that risks undermining western solidarity in the face of Kremlin aggression towards Ukraine.
In a speech to the European Parliament, Macron called for EU states to “conduct their own dialogue” with Russia rather than support ongoing diplomatic efforts led by the US and Nato — and in sharp contrast to a plea from US secretary of state Antony Blinken for “unity”.
Macron said that despite the joint EU-US diplomacy, Europeans had to offer Russia a solution to de-escalate tensions with Moscow in the “coming weeks”.
“We should build as Europeans working with other Europeans and with Nato and then propose it for negotiation with Russia,” he told MEPs in Strasbourg on Wednesday. “It is good that Europeans and the United States co-ordinate, but it is necessary that Europeans conduct their own dialogue.”
