The French president, Emmanuel Macron, warned this Friday that interrupting financial support to Ukraine, as proposed by the far-right leader Marine Le Pen if she reaches the Élysée, would leave France disconnected from its European partners and directly compromise its national security, understanding that abandoning Kiev in the face of the Russian offensive would send a signal of "weakness".
"Anyone who today explains to the French that we are going to save money because all this is not serious and that we are going to stop supporting Ukraine would place France, from the very first second, in an unprecedented situation. We would be the only ones to stop doing so. The only ones," he stated at a press conference after the European Council meeting in Brussels.
Macron responded to Le Pen's words, who has promised that if she comes to power, she will cut economic aid to Ukraine within six months, a scenario that the head of state has firmly ruled out, emphasizing that support for Kiev is not merely a political option, but an obligation to safeguard the security interests of France and the rest of the continent.
"If France, like all other member countries of the European Union, supports Ukraine, it is because we know that what is at stake is our security," he defended, before warning that renouncing that support would mean assuming that the security of France "is not worth much".
In this line, he accused those who demand putting an end to financial assistance to Kiev of "throwing overboard" European security and, in particular, that of the French population, while maintaining that sustaining support for Ukrainian resistance is, in his opinion, the most effective way to protect the country against the threat of Russia.
"Capitulation is weakness. Weakness is danger. I believe that the best way to protect today the French women and men is to help Ukraine as we are doing, because it is on the front line of defense of our security," he emphasized.
Reproach to Le Pen for her "lack of humility"
Beyond the clash over Ukraine, Macron also launched a criticism at Le Pen for publicly anticipating the decisions she would make at the head of the State before the upcoming presidential elections, considering that certain political leaders express themselves "as if they were already in office".
"I do not interfere in the campaign, but sometimes I am surprised by the lack of humility of some people who express themselves as if they were already in office. Let us respect the French women and men. They will vote. Maintain humility," he pointed out.
The French leader also recalled that it will be the citizens who determine who will take on the tasks of government in the upcoming elections and defended that, until then, he will continue to fully exercise the powers granted to him by the Constitution.
"The day will come when someone will be elected and will have to assume that responsibility. Until then, that responsibility is exercised, according to the Constitution, by the one who speaks to you, who was elected for that," he concluded.