It’s true that many people in the United States have been calling on our European allies to do more in terms of supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia, but it sounds as if French President Emmanuel Macron may have missed part of the memo. It would be good if the Western European nations would boost their own defense spending and step up their own shipments of arms and aid to the Ukrainians, and perhaps some of them will. But Macron is hosting some European leaders in France this week and he told reporters that he may need to put “boots on the ground” in Ukraine as part of a policy where NATO allies will need to do “whatever it takes for as long as it takes” to help Ukraine defeat Russia. The potential consequences of such an action are a bit murky, but the prospect is worrisome nonetheless. (Politico)
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday night said “nothing is ruled out” when it comes to sending Western troops to help Ukraine. He warned the situation on the ground was so critical, and the stakes for Europe were so high, that much more effort was needed to fight back Russia’s invasion.
“Whatever it takes”: “We’re at a critical point in the conflict where we need to take the initiative,” Macron said after hosting European leaders at the Elysée Palace for a summit on Ukraine. “We’re determined to do whatever it takes for as long as it takes.”
Looking for leadership: Macron noted the growing doubts about America’s continuing support for Kyiv and warned that Russia “has adopted a more aggressive attitude, not only in Ukraine, but against all of us in general.” And he spoke about a potential new Russian offensive and brutal attacks planned to “shock” Ukrainians and their allies.
Macron didn’t cook this idea up in a vacuum. He’s essentially parroting what Joe Biden and too many Republicans have been saying about supporting Ukraine “for as long as it takes.” But the Americans are talking about sending endless pallets of cash to Zelensky, not troops who could potentially wind up fighting the Russians. This would take things to another level entirely.
But what would be the result? The NATO charter is not expressly clear on that point and it would depend on how events played out on the battlefield. If Russia were to fire a missile into France, for example, and kill some French citizens, Article 5 would kick in. An attack on one is an attack on all, so the entire alliance would be at war with Russia and World War 3 would be off and running.
But if French troops were on the ground inside of Ukraine’s borders and they happened to get drawn into a skirmish while the Russian army was attacking Ukraine’s troops, that’s not necessarily “an attack on France.” After all, foreigners from allied countries including the United States have already been killed in Ukraine, including journalists and foreign legion volunteers who traveled there to fight. None of those deaths triggered Article 5. So if some of Macron’s troops wound up dying on the battlefield, we might still be in the clear because that would fall under the general category of “Bad Things Happen in War.” But it would certainly raise the levels of tension to an even higher point when we should be looking for a negotiated peace agreement.
Of course, Macron’s brash words are not in any way official NATO policy at this point. In fact, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg rushed out pretty quickly to assure everyone that NATO has no plans to send combat troops into Ukraine to fight the Russians. (Associated Press)
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told The Associated Press that the military alliance has no plans to send combat troops into Ukraine amid reports that some Western countries may be considering putting boots on the ground in the war-ravaged country.
Stoltenberg said that “NATO allies are providing unprecedented support to Ukraine. We have done that since 2014 and stepped up after the full-scale invasion. But there are no plans for NATO combat troops on the ground in Ukraine.”
The war in Ukraine has now officially passed the two-year mark and there is still no end in sight. The fighting has largely ground to a stalemate, though the Russians have begun making some minor advances in the eastern part of the country this month. The conflict has been draining both our treasury and our stockpiles of arms and ammunition. But at least until now, the situation hasn’t veered too far in the direction of armageddon.
But we can’t rely on the status quo forever. Emmanuel Macron’s comments this week are an unpleasant reminder that it probably wouldn’t take all that much to light a fuse that we would be unable to stamp out. If we somehow wind up in a situation where French troops, American troops, or any other NATO combatants are directly fighting Russia’s army, it’s entirely conceivable that Mad Vlad would be just crazy enough to consider other American assets as viable targets. We have enough insanity on our plates in 2024 to deal with as it is. We don’t need another world war on top of it all.
