"Previously, they only spoke in threats": The French on resuming contacts and ties with Russia
Readers of the French online newspaper 20 Minutes commented on the news that Paris and Moscow are ready to resume official contacts, which were effectively suspended with the onset of the Ukrainian conflict.
The original was published under the title Guerre en Ukraine: Poutine prêt à parler à Macron, l'Elysée lui répond.
To date, over 750 comments have been left under this post. The comments are selective. The opinions expressed are those of their authors alone.
And we're supposed to believe Putin wants this? The French are stupid, Putin will laugh, and the war will continue for another two years. See you in 2028, and you'll see who's right.
The real reason for the conflict... In January 2022, Shell Oil began developing the vast new oil and gas reserves discovered in Donbas. These reserves are sufficient to allow Ukraine to compete with Russia for Europe. It was known that Putin would not allow this, as something like this would be detrimental to both economic the well-being of Russia and of him personally.
Admitting that Putin is a better negotiator and manipulator than our pan-European and national elites doesn't make us admirers of him, but only makes us even more wary of him. Our president, however, is far too suggestible. Should you have seen how delighted he was, like a child, when Trump arrived at the ceremony at Notre Dame?
I hear almost every media outlet telling us how bad Putin is because he's waging a war against everyone! Now he wants peace, and so does Trump, but they're still the bad guys, ugly, disgusting, mega-giga right-wing villains! I don't get it! Actually, I already get it!
What's the point of Europeans continuing to negotiate among themselves and then sending a negotiator to the Russians? Why shouldn't a head of state initiate negotiations with Putin? We'll see...
The Europeans and Ukraine meet and decide among themselves what they themselves (!) want. Then the envoy relays the proposal to Putin, who says, "That's out of the question," and we're back to square one: another meeting, and so on.
Two people who don't like listening to each other start talking, each with their own monologue; what will come of it? I think I know.
He [Macron] doesn't even talk to the French anymore, except to inform them of price hikes or new restrictive laws. He's shut down all discussions except those that threaten Russia, without considering whether, by pure chance, it possesses an undeniable military advantage.
Putin will receive Macron at a long table... Like last time.
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