President of France, Emmanuel Macron is slated to make a televised address to France on Wednesday night.
Macron noted on X, that he will address his “dear compatriots” at “this moment of great uncertainty when the world is facing its greatest challenges.”
This comes as Macron tries to calm voters’ concerns over Donald Trump upending the international order and EU leaders prepare for a special summit on defence.
Macron’s pre-recorded speech on primetime TV will address the Ukraine crisis, European security and the threat of a transatlantic trade war after Trump paused US support to Ukraine and also threatened to slap tariffs on goods from the EU, following on from levies imposed on China, Mexico and Canada.
According to an official, Macron’s words will be aiming to calm “anxiety” among the French public and he will discuss what the 27-nation EU and allies such as Britain can do together to bolster European security and secure a “fair and lasting” peace in Ukraine.
However, Macron will also stress that the US remains an ally and that Europe needs it to help defend Ukraine.
European leaders are stepping up diplomatic efforts after Trump ordered a pause on all critical US military aid for Ukraine against Russia, three years into the invasion, after an explosive public confrontation in the Oval Office last week with the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Sophie Primas, a French government spokesperson, said that Europe is at a “turning point” in its history.
“Our continent has not known a situation so serious and unstable since the end of the second world war.
“We’re entering a new era, and we all need to get involved. Europe is strong. We must reinforce our defence and invest more in our security.”
Sophie Primas
She added that France was working on re-establishing ties between the US and Ukraine to achieve a “lasting and robust peace.”
Macron, whose popularity had dropped during a domestic political crisis prompted by him calling snap elections, appears to be experiencing a slight increase in support among voters, amid Ukraine diplomacy and the first steps of the Trump administration.
One poll, after Macron’s recent visit to Washington, showed an improvement in his confidence ratings among French voters.
However, the push to increase French defence spending is coinciding with government struggles to reduce the budget deficit.
Macron To Host Orban
After his speech on Wednesday, Macron will host the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, for a working-dinner at the Élysée Palace amid intense preparations for Thursday’s EU summit on defence and support for Ukraine.
EU leaders are contemplating the stark prospect of the US withdrawing longer-term support from Kyiv and more broadly from its European allies.
The summit will discuss a massive boost in European defence spending to make up for the expected dwindling of transatlantic support under Trump.
Alongside the Ukraine crisis, EU leaders will discuss a proposal by the European Commission to borrow up to €150bn to lend to member states under a rearmament plan.
Consensus on all these issues is not straightforward.
Orbán is an admirer not only of Trump but also Russian President, Vladimir Putin, and has repeatedly broken a united EU front on Ukraine.
The Hungarian leader – one of Trump’s and Moscow’s closest allies in the EU – said earlier this week that a “transatlantic rift” over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had become apparent over recent days.
He accused European leaders, who met in London over the weekend to support Kyiv, of having decided “that the war in Ukraine must continue.”
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