French President Emmanuel Macron called Wednesday for sustained international military support for Ukraine because Russia is now showing signs of “weakness” and division. Follow along for updates on the summit of the NATO military alliance in Lithuania’s capital, as the Associated Press reported:
Macron calls for sustained help for Ukraine
Newslooks- VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron called Wednesday for sustained international military support for Ukraine because Russia is now showing signs of “weakness” and division.
Speaking at the end of a NATO summit in Lithuania dominated by the war, Macron said the path for Ukraine to join NATO is “open,” even though alliance members stopped short of offering a clear timetable or plan for the country’s membership.
Responding to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s disappointment, Macron said “it’s legitimate” for Zelenskyy “to expect a lot from us.”
But, he said at the summit, NATO allies “did what we ought to do” while preserving the unity of the alliance.
Macron said “time is on Ukraine’s side” in the war, because divisions exposed by a mutiny by Wagner mercenaries last month “have shown the weakness of Russian power.”
The French president reiterated a promise to send SCALP long-range missiles to Ukraine and said NATO allies should maintain a long-term commitment. Even if the war drags on, he said, “We will still be there.”
Macron also made it clear that he opposes expanding NATO’s activities beyond Europe. The alliance had planned to open a liaison office in Japan but France opposed the move. The alliance takes decisions unanimously.
He welcomed Japan’s presence at the summit and said NATO should have partners in the Indo-Pacific or other regions. “Nevertheless, put simply, it remains the North-Atlantic Treaty Organization. The Indo-Pacific is not the North Atlantic.”
Earlier Wednesday, China — where Macron traveled on a state visit in April — reiterated that it “resolutely opposes NATO’s eastward expansion into the Asia-Pacific.”
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U.S. President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday that the United States is “doing everything we can” to help Ukraine succeed in its fight against Russia, adding that he understands Zelenskyy’s frustration over NATO’s decision regarding membership for his country.
The presidents sat down together on the sidelines of the annual NATO summit in Lithuania after the U.S. and other world powers announced long-term security commitments for Ukraine.
Biden told Zelenskyy: “We’re going to make sure you get what you need.”
Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude for billions of dollars in weapons and other support from the American people, despite his biting criticism of NATO a day earlier over not outlining a pathway to membership for his country.
The U.S. has said Ukraine should not be allowed to join NATO while it is at war, out of fear that membership would spark a global confrontation with Russia, which opposes Ukraine coming under NATO’s security umbrella.
Zelenskyy told Biden: “You gave us huge support and I want to thank all the Americans.”
Biden said Ukraine is paying a “hell of a price” but that the war is “bringing the world together.” He said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has been calling his counterparts around the world for help.
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British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has declined to repeat his defense minister’s comments that Ukraine must ensure its allies don’t feel taken for granted.
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said at the NATO summit in Vilnius that “whether we like it or not, people want to see gratitude” for supplying Ukraine with weapons.
Sunak said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had “repeatedly expressed his gratitude” to the U.K. and other allies.
Speaking at a news conference in Vilnius, Sunak said Ukrainians are “fighting for their lives and freedom. So I completely understand Volodymyr’s desire to do everything he can to protect his people and to stop this war.”
He said the NATO summit had seen allies “doubling down in their support” for Kyiv and had taken a “big step” toward admitting Ukraine to the alliance.
“The summit communique echoes the U.K.’s long-held position that Ukraine’s future is in NATO,” he said.
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The Group of Seven industrial nations issued a joint declaration on Wednesday pledging long-term security assistance for Ukraine to bolster the besieged country’s defenses during and after its war with Russia.
“Our solidarity will never waver,” said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, which sits with Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United States to make up the G-7.
The announcement, which came on the last day of a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, lays the groundwork for individual nations to negotiate their own arrangements with Ukraine.
“We’re going to help Ukraine build a strong, capable defense,” U.S. President Joe Biden said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for the support, saying the actions taken during the Vilnius summit would provide “much needed and meaningful success” for his country.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the G-7’s arrangement makes it possible for signatories to further specify their concrete contributions to Ukraine and embed them “in a longer-term strategy which Ukraine can then rely on.”
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What to know:
— NATO backs Ukraine’s fight vs. Russia but doesn’t invite Kyiv to join
— Sweden’s rocky road from neutrality toward NATO membership
— What is NATO doing to help Ukraine in the war with Russia?
