Macron Russian aggression 'knows no borders'

Emmanuel Macron has warned that Russian aggression "knows no borders", will not stop at Ukraine and is a direct threat to France and Europe which must prepare in case the US steps away from its side.

- Angelique Chrisafis

"I want to believe the US will stay by our side," the French president said in a televised address last night. "But we have to be ready if that isn't the case."

He sought to calm what his office called voter anxiety on the Ukraine crisis, European security and the threat of a transatlantic trade war after Trump paused US support to Ukraine and threatened to impose tariffs on goods from the EU, following on from levies imposed on China, Mexico and Canada.

Macron said in a prime-time TV speech: "I'm speaking to you tonight because of the international situation and its consequences for Europe... I know you are legitimately worried faced with the historic events that are shaking the world order. The war in Ukraine, which has left almost one million dead and injured, continues with the same intensity. The US, our ally, has changed its position on this war, supporting Ukraine less and allowing doubt to linger on what will come next."

He said the increasingly "brutal" world was entering a new era and that "it would be madness to stay a spectator in this world of danger".