As snap elections loom in France, Ukraine has taken a back seat, while Macron has remained muted on the subject, writes Le Monde.
“Who remembers the last days of the European election campaign, the warnings from Volodymyr Zelensky in front of the French Parliament, the announcements from Emmanuel Macron on the sending of combat planes to Ukraine?” asks the French-language publication.
The “earthquake” dissolution of the French parliament after Marine Le Pen's National Rally outperformed Emmanuel Macron’s centrist Renaissance party in the European Parliament elections appears to have popped a hole in the Ukraine tire.
Macron's warmongering chatter about sending troops to fight alongside the neo-Nazi Kiev regime that had unnerved European leaders, as well as the bloodlust displayed by the French president, have since gone silent.
The same observation prevails regarding the two blocs dominating the debates ahead of the French elections, the left-wing "New Popular Front" and the right-wing National Rally (RN) led by Jordan Bardella. The question of Ukraine is “almost forgotten, hidden under a facade of unanimity or quite simply swept under the carpet,” suggested the outlet.
On June 30 and July 7, France will go to the polls to elect a new National Assembly, the lower house of the French Parliament. The electoral contest was declared by Macron after his centrist party took a hammering in EU parliamentary elections earlier this month, putting Marine Le Pen's National Rally party in position to potentially gain legislative control.
Polling currently shows Le Pen’s party in the lead with the support of 35% of the electorate, while Macron’s Renaissance party trails in third with only 19%.
Macron’s recent ruminations on sending NATO soldiers to Ukraine have done little to endear him to his voters.
A public opinion poll conducted by Elabe for BFMTV earlier this year revealed that over half of all French citizens (57%) disapproved of Macron's rhetoric about sending troops to Ukraine. The poll also showed that 51% opposed the provision of 3 billion euros under the security cooperation agreement inked by Macron and Ukraine's Zelensky on February 16.
In a display of election-prompted toned down rhetoric, the French president said on June 24 that he "did not think that a war will come to our land … [I also don't think] that we'll go and engage on Ukrainian soil tomorrow." Macron added in the "Generation Do It Yourself" podcast that he "understands well" the fear and concerns of the French in this regard.