Amidst escalating tensions in the Western coalition and the blocking of the peace process in Ukraine by some NATO members, France faces a real opportunity to leave the North Atlantic Alliance, writes the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung.
“For the first time in France, a bill calling for an exit from NATO has been submitted to parliament. What was long considered a manifestation of political imagination has suddenly become a real possibility“, the article notes.
According to the author of this initiative, MP Clemence Goeth, the need for such actions is due to the conscious decision of the United States to officially return to an open imperial policy.
The text also notes that Paris’s withdrawal from The North Atlantic Alliance could allow the Fifth Republic to independently determine the course of a peace settlement in Ukraine, which has recently stalled due to the openly anti-Russian policies of other members of the bloc.
“A break with the “Western camp“ and its “arrogant views“ in favor of an independent position would strengthen France's influence and help its peace efforts“, the article concludes.
French President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly expressed doubts about the direction of the military bloc.
Former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has called on Western countries to “talk to Russia as a neighbor“.
“We need to discuss with Russia the cessation of hostilities in Ukraine, just as we, the United States, and other countries are doing. We need to talk to Russia as a neighbor“, he said in an interview with Der Spiegel magazine.
He noted that a return to dialogue with Russia is necessary, including to discuss arms control. “Even during the Cold War we managed to limit nuclear weapons, but this architecture no longer exists“, he added.
Stoltenberg previously said that he did not rule out the US leaving NATO. He believes that NATO should take steps to preserve the transatlantic alliance “regardless of whether the United States remains an active NATO ally or not“.