“La Francia ha mantenuto una deterrenza nucleare dal 1964”, ha detto Macron. “Quella deterrenza deve essere applicata a tutti i nostri alleati europei.”

Putin is kicking himself in the shins. Things have gone horribly wrong ever since Yanukovych ran off with his pants halfway down. Back then, it wouldn’t have taken much to genuinely become Ukraine’s true friend, but instead, a different path was chosen.

Once Crimea was annexed, a “deal” was still possible if anyone had been willing. But it wasn’t even something anyone thought about.

Then the invasion turned into a massive failure, and once again, there was an opportunity to quickly pull back the troops and strike a “deal.” A significant portion of the Crimean Peninsula, along with a joint “security pact” ensuring no offensive weapons that could be used against Russia would be stationed in Ukraine. But no, that option was also off the table.

Now, they thought they could cleverly use Trump to push for peace, but they failed to realize just how ignorant and clueless he is—he didn’t even grasp that the “Russian demands” were merely the opening gambit in a normal diplomatic negotiation. So, the oblivious U.S. president took them at face value and immediately sabotaged any chance for peace, trying to force Ukraine to accept Russia’s initial terms. And because they couldn’t resist posturing and kept Ukraine out of the process, they never even had a way to fix that blunder.

And now, they’ve managed to wake up the “European bear,” the one they’ve feared since World War II. With good reason, too—many European countries have waged bloody wars and extensive invasions of Russia. Sweden, for instance, was one of Russia’s main enemies for a long time. The entire Eastern Bloc was originally meant as a buffer against a European enemy, and the whole Russian “sphere” mindset is based on the same idea: keeping Europe away from Russia. The U.S. “defending” Europe worked perfectly for Russia, as long as it meant European countries would focus on trade, economy, and public health rather than militarization.

But as I said, through one blunder after another, they’ve created a situation where a united Europe is now seriously arming itself. And at a time when Russia is already stretched thin, under sanctions, and the current leadership feels they must—or at least think they must—deliver something from the “special operation” in Ukraine, or risk being replaced. And in many ways, this poses just as much of a threat to Russia’s entire mindset as a stronger Europe does. They’re fully aware that beneath the surface, there’s massive support for greater democracy, international acceptance, and a better standard of living—basically, a lifestyle more like the West’s.

At the same time, Russia is stuck in a stalemate—no way forward, no way back. The unpredictable Trump is really the last card they have left to play. One option is to hold a new round of Russian-American talks and “generously offer” to ease their demands a little (=a lot), in the hope of achieving peace, and maybe even trick Trump into thinking he could win the Nobel Peace Prize. The problem with that strategy, however, is that, given how things went last time, it would be safer to stick to their minimum demands in case Trump goes all-in with those same demands on Ukraine (calling Trump a “negotiator” is laughable—he has no idea what negotiation actually means). But doing that would mean showing their entire hand to the other side.

I just don’t see any other way for Russia to end the war except to use Trump to strike a “deal” that Ukraine can also agree to. The alternative is to keep getting weaker, while Europe only grows stronger and continues to support Ukraine. The thought of another 10 years of sanctions, losses, and a frontline that barely moves, with active fighting stretching as far into Russia as a Taurus missile can reach, while all their competitors continue developing at a breakneck pace—anyone would feel shaky in that scenario. The fact that they have 5,000 outdated nuclear weapons and could wipe out the planet if they wanted is little comfort when they’re falling behind while everyone else is moving forward.

Baguette for all my neighbours !

France has maintained their independence from the USA, kudos to the French.

Nuclear weapons is the only deterrent.

Yes please!

France made the right decision back in the 1960s.. a nuclear deterrent independent of everyone, including the usa. 

Makes sense, well said

Didn’t France test out a new version of the m51 missile not too long ago?

Maybe it’s time to test a warhead as a reminder. 

He really won me last couple of months.

True leader of Europe. Vive la France!

If war breaks out, we need to defend our continent. Prepare the worst, to avoid the worst. Thank you all of the leaders in Europe, because now this is, what all of us needs in these dark times!

Time to station some in Greenland and next time Trump talks about taking Greenland, Macron can say “go ahead make my day.”

I for one welcome back our French overlords

Vive le fucking France.

Damn, I start to like this guy

That’s all that needs to be said.

Nice words but sadly means little when the next likely president already said she wont cover europe

Point em at the yanks!