“The arrival of Donald Trump accelerates the negotiation process and this should not be to the detriment of Ukraine.” The election of Donald Trump for a second term as head of the United States, a turning point in the war in Ukraine? This is the analysis that Dominique de Villepin made this Monday, November 25 on RMC-BFMTV.
Although the hypothetical negotiations between Ukraine and Russia to end the war could be led by the Republican president after his arrival at the White House in January 2025, the former head of the French Government asks France and the Europeans “not to be spectators.” “”.
“In this negotiation, we should not be spectators watching Donald Trump argue with Vladimir Putin at the risk of imposing a peace that the Ukrainians do not want,” the French diplomat and lawyer firmly maintains.
Therefore, both Moscow and kyiv seem to depend on a free spirit: Donald Trump, who in his first term embodied a non-interventionist vision, preferred instead to disengage the United States from conflicts. The president-elect’s teams have already confirmed that they are working on an “agreement” on Sunday.
“What we have to discuss is who will be at the table, whether it is an agreement, an armistice, how to bring both sides to the table and what the framework will be. “An agreement,” Mike Waltz, head of national security of Donald Trump advisor said on Fox News.
“Ideal peace” or weakening of Ukraine
In the eyes of Dominique de Villepin, the end of the war in Ukraine can occur in three ways. The worst scenario, in his opinion, would be that of an “imposed peace” on Ukraine, where kyiv could be forced to “liberate 20% of its territory” and thus renounce its sovereignty, or even have to abandon its hopes of joining NATO.
Faced with this dark scenario, Dominique de Villepin prefers an “ideal peace”, in which Russia would choose to withdraw after its aggression.
“There is a peace that would be ideal and from there we must leave. There is Russian aggression: we must respect international law. It is up to Russia to leave Ukrainian territory and that is so that Ukraine can have its full sovereignty.” “he explains, recognizing an “unlikely” projection.
Establishing “red lines”
So there is one left in the middle. A status quo that begins above all with the cessation of fighting, a ceasefire without immediately drawing the cards again. According to him, it is on this option “that Americans are working today.” Therefore, it remains to define “guarantees” in this context: can Ukraine join NATO? Should a no-fly zone be defined?
In these upcoming negotiations, according to him, France must reach out to its European allies and unite behind Ukraine, helping it establish “red lines” in the negotiations. However, without resorting to a possible sending of French or European ground troops, which, according to him, would entail “a risk of mechanical escalation.”
Conditions, calendar, borders… In any case, the diplomat believes that “Ukrainians must speak.” “They are the ones who die, they are the ones who suffer.”
Source: BFM TV
