‘Wake up’ about defense, Macron tells Europe as Trump takes office

CESSON-SEVIGNE, France (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron called on Europe Monday to “wake up” and spend more on defense in order to reduce its reliance on the United States for its security, in a speech to the French military as Donald Trump returns to power.

Macron referred to expected changes in Washington’s foreign policy, especially regarding the war in Ukraine, saying it was an “opportunity for a European strategic wake-up call,” in his New Year’s speech to the military at the Army Digital and Cyber Support Command based in western France.

“What will we do in Europe tomorrow if our American ally withdraws its warships from the Mediterranean? If they send their fighter jets from the Atlantic to the Pacific?” he asked.

Trump has criticized the cost of the war in Ukraine for U.S. taxpayers through major military aid packages and has made it clear that he wants to shift more of the fiscal burden onto Europe. He has vowed to bring the conflict to a swift end, voicing hope that peace could be negotiated in six months.

France and Europe need to adapt to evolving threats and changing interests, Macron said. “Who would have thought a year ago that Greenland would be at the center of political and strategic debates? That’s the way it is.”

He said providing lasting support to Ukraine is key so that Kyiv is in a strong position when engaging in any future peace negotiations.

Ukraine must receive “guarantees” against any return of the war on its territory when hostilities cease and Europe must take “play its full role” in the process, he said.

Last week, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he discussed with Macron about the possibility of Western troops deploying in Ukraine to safeguard any peace deal ending the nearly three-year war with Russia.

“As one of these guarantees, we discussed the French initiative to deploy military contingents in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.

Potentially sending European troops as peacekeepers to Ukraine is fraught with risk. Such a move may not deter Russia from attacking Ukraine again in the future, which is the fear of Ukrainian officials, and could drag European countries into a direct confrontation with Moscow. That, in turn, could pull NATO — including the United States — into a conflict.

法国塞松-塞维涅（美联社）——法国总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙周一在对法国军方发表的讲话中呼吁欧洲“醒醒”，增加国防开支，以减少对美国安全的依赖。此时，唐纳德·特朗普正重返政坛。

马克龙在位于法国西部的陆军数字和网络支援司令部向军方发表新年讲话时，提到了华盛顿外交政策的预期变化，尤其是在乌克兰战争方面，称这是“欧洲战略觉醒的机会”。

“如果我们的美国盟友明天从地中海撤回军舰，如果他们把战斗机从大西洋派往太平洋，我们欧洲该怎么办？”他问道。

特朗普批评美国纳税人通过巨额军事援助计划承担乌克兰战争的巨额费用，并明确表示希望将更多财政负担转移到欧洲。他誓言要迅速结束冲突，并表示希望能在六个月内通过谈判达成和平协议。

马克龙表示，法国和欧洲需要适应不断变化的威胁和利益。“一年前谁能想到格陵兰岛会成为政治和战略辩论的焦点？事实就是如此。”

他表示，向乌克兰提供持久支持至关重要，这样基辅在未来参与任何和平谈判时才能处于有利地位。

他表示，乌克兰必须获得“保证”，防止敌对行动停止后战争在其领土上再次爆发，欧洲必须在这一过程中“发挥其全部作用”。

上周，乌克兰总统泽连斯基表示，他与马克龙讨论了西方军队可能部署到乌克兰以维护任何结束与俄罗斯近三年战争的和平协议的可能性。

泽连斯基说：“作为这些保证之一，我们讨论了法国向乌克兰部署军事力量的倡议。”

向乌克兰派遣欧洲维和部队存在诸多风险。乌克兰官员担心，此举可能无法阻止俄罗斯未来再次攻击乌克兰，反而可能将欧洲国家拖入与莫斯科的直接对抗。而这反过来又可能将北约——包括美国——卷入冲突。