Only Russia stands in the way of peace in Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron said today in an interview with RTL radio, quoted by Reuters, BTA reported.
"The only red line that we have had for three years is called Russia", Macron said.
In front of the radio, he noted that the peace plan for Ukraine by US President Donald Trump is going in the right direction at this stage, but is more acceptable to Russia and therefore needs improvement in order to be acceptable to Ukraine and Europe.
"We want peace, but not one that would mean the capitulation of Ukraine", the French president specified. He added that Ukraine's first line of defense after making peace with Russia is the renewal of Ukrainian forces, and therefore they cannot be restricted.
According to the French president, only Ukrainians can decide what territorial concessions they are willing to make.
Emmanuel Macron also said that "Europeans are the ones who will have to decide" how to use frozen Russian assets, which Donald Trump proposes in his plan to be invested in American projects for the reconstruction of Ukraine, according to Agence France-Presse.
"Europeans are the only ones who have a say in the use of frozen Russian assets, which are now held by Europeans, because this is part of the plan," Macron stressed, calling for greater determination in the face of the "threat" from Russia, which is taking an "increasingly aggressive position."