France and Britain have put forward a proposal for a partial one-month truce in the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. However, the proposed ceasefire would not extend to ground combat, French President Emmanuel Macron revealed in an interview with the daily newspaper “Le Figaro” on Sunday. Instead, the truce would focus on halting air and sea attacks, as well as strikes on energy infrastructure.
Macron explained that monitoring a complete cessation of fighting along the front line—spanning a distance equivalent to that between Paris and Budapest—would be nearly impossible.
The French president made these remarks while en route to London for a high-level summit of European leaders, hosted by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The meeting aimed to accelerate diplomatic efforts toward a potential peace plan for Ukraine. The London talks followed a tense White House meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and US President Donald Trump, which reportedly ended in discord. In contrast, European leaders have shown strong support for Zelenskiy and pledged to bolster their aid to Ukraine.
Macron clarified that European ground troops would not be deployed to Ukraine in the near future. He described a two-phase approach in which military personnel might only be sent after a truce is successfully negotiated and a peace deal is signed.
“There will be no European troops on Ukrainian soil in the coming weeks,” Le Figaro quoted him as saying. “The question is how we use this time to try to obtain a truce, with negotiations that will take several weeks and then, once peace is signed, a (troop) deployment.”
When asked about the proposal, Zelenskiy simply stated, “I’m aware of everything,” without elaborating further.
Macron also reiterated the need for European nations to strengthen their defense budgets, suggesting that spending should rise to between 3% and 3.5% of gross domestic product. He urged the European Commission to explore innovative ways to finance defense expenditures, reflecting growing concerns over security in the region.
As Europe navigates complex diplomatic and military challenges, the Franco-British proposal marks an attempt to de-escalate hostilities while laying the groundwork for broader peace negotiations. Whether Russia and Ukraine will entertain such a limited truce, however, remains uncertain.
Melissa Enoch
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