France, Germany love Putin's 'negotiating' pose

In the presence of Biden, Scholz and Macron pretend to be united in opposing the Russian war, but behind the scenes they play their own game.

In fact, all NATO leaders are in favor of negotiations with Putin, but there is a difference.

According to American logic, negotiations will take place only when Putin realizes that war on the battlefield is futile. That is, it is about negotiations on Ukraine's terms. The US position was unanimously supported, which led politicians to talk about the monolithic nature of NATO. But…

During a recent personal meeting with Zelenskyy, French President Macron and German Chancellor Scholz again struck a pose that departed from the Munich agreements: they convinced the Ukrainian leader that it was advisable to start so-called peace talks with Moscow in the near future. The mantra is the same: the war is dragging on, Crimea cannot be liberated, the West cannot supply weapons to Ukraine forever, and the conflict is at a dead end. (With these words, Macron wipes away a man's tears while pouring a bottle of Moskovskaya.)

“The mantra is the same: the war is dragging on, Crimea cannot be liberated, the West cannot supply weapons to Ukraine forever, and the conflict is at a dead end. (With these words, Macron wipes away a man's tears while pouring a bottle of Moskovskaya.)”

Sometimes it seems that Europeans are trying to outsmart themselves.

“Russia's defeat in the war should include, but not be limited to, a military loss. Part of Russia's defeat, in particular, should be the deprivation of Russia's 'colonial mentality', Macron said just a week ago. And a few days later, he pushed a scenario on Zelenskyy, according to which part of Ukraine would remain occupied, Putin would be the winner, and he would continue to nurture his "colonial mentality.” In other words, he would be preparing for a new war.

Now, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is also in favor of closer talks with Putin, but on Ukraine's terms. He proposed doubling military aid to the Ukrainian armed forces, as well as giving Ukraine “protection before it becomes a member of the Alliance” and providing Ukraine with a “decisive advantage” on the battlefield, including military aircraft. And what about the Germans and the French? They are complaining and throwing up their hands, giving crumbs only when asked.

The hot phase (pardon the oxymoron) of the Cold War between China and the United States is now beginning. These political twins are trying to repeat the same mistake with Xi as they did with Putin: playing along with both 'ours' and 'yours' for fear of the economic consequences of a cold confrontation.

“The hot phase (pardon the oxymoron) of the Cold War between China and the United States is now beginning. These political twins are trying to repeat the same mistake with Xi as they did with Putin: playing along with both 'ours' and 'yours' for fear of the economic consequences of a cold confrontation.”

In early March, Macron went to China, just as he once went to Moscow (and seems to have called Putin more often than his wife, delaying assistance to Ukraine in every way possible). It's possible that Scholz will eventually rush to Xi's side as well. But no matter how flexible the leaders of the Old World may be, they will not be able to stay in the stretch for long.

But now Scholz and Macron have synchronized their statements with Lukashenko and Russian propaganda. Any negotiating sobs of the 'twins' are eagerly relayed by Russian propaganda, presenting them in its own twisted way, “Ukrainians have lost everything.” If the topic fades away, the German Bild can always rekindle it. The words of the Old World leaders are repeated almost word for word not only by Russian politicians, but also by the now self-proclaimed dictator of Belarus, who has fled to Beijing.

I don't want to think that all this is being orchestrated by red China. But somehow, the sprouts of “sudden peacemaking” are increasingly being nurtured from China.

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About the author. Orest Sohar, journalist, Obozrevatel Editor-in-Chief. 

The editors do not always share the opinions expressed by the authors of the blogs.