We must “obstruct Russia’s plans” without “going to war,” said French Foreign Minister Stéphane Sejournay in an interview on Tuesday evening with French TV channel LCI, quoted by AFP.

“We are at a tipping point that must force us to confront Russia and we must use the balance of power to protect the French and the Europeans,” he said, adding: “We are convinced that we must continue to support Ukraine.” ”, a country that Russia invaded on February 24, 2022.

France’s foreign minister spoke after Emmanuel Macron said in Prague on Tuesday that it was “necessary” to destabilize Ukraine’s allies, urging them “not to be cowards” in the face of an “unstoppable” Russia.

The French president also said he “took responsibility” for his recent controversial remarks about the possibility of sending Western troops to the war-torn country.

“Is it our war or not our war? Can we avoid it, believe that everything can continue to happen? I don’t think so, and that’s why it’s a strategic leap that I called for and that I fully accept,” Macron said, adding that the “clarity” of his statements was what “Europe needs.”

Responding to a request to comment on Emmanuel Macron’s statements, Sejourne said: “We must defeat Russia without going to war with Russia, this is the framework established by the President of the Republic (…) and we must not reach the framework of co-military actions. “

“We have never crossed the threshold of the commonwealth and we will not cross it,” he added.

“France speaks in a slightly different context because it is a nuclear power; I believe that France can talk to Russia as equals,” the minister continued.

• On the same topic: the USA reacted to Macron’s statements about the introduction of Western troops into Ukraine: “Zelensky did not ask”

If Russia wins, there will be war

“The messages that France sends in response, as well as the Europeans, are an element of the balance of power” with Russia, he believes.

“If Ukraine falls, Russia will probably get its way, and if Russia gets its way, there is a risk of war, there will be cascading consequences, and I do not value the European Union very much (…), we must avoid this scenario.” – he said.

Referring to his meeting on Tuesday in Paris with German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock, Sejournay said his counterpart “reaffirmed his determination to support Ukraine in the long term (…) and his great determination to guarantee the unity of Europeans.”

“She is aware of the consequences of the Russian victory in Ukraine, and I think we share the issue of protecting Europeans, which also requires a balance of power, and she is aware of that,” he said.

“The risk of a general “Brexit””

Asked about the European elections on June 9, the French minister said there was a “risk of a general ‘Brexit'” after those elections and “probably a risk of blocking the institutions”. “And the institutional impasse is no help for Ukraine,” he emphasized.

The head of French diplomacy added that “at the end of the week” he would visit the Baltic countries to “discuss the situation with them.”