Opinion column by Marie-France Chatin.
For many countries around the world, Ukraine is a very distant subject, both geographically and emotionally. Even in Europe, where I’ve sometimes heard that the Russian-Ukrainian question is ultimately an internal matter, or even a civil war in which we have no business interfering.
To the surprise of many analysts, the campaign for the elections to the European Parliament made little mention of the war in Ukraine. It was not a campaign issue, even though the European Union (EU) was literally in shock in February 2022.
We recall the headlines at the time: “War is back in Europe” “Europe at war”. A shock, then, but for those of us who didn’t live under Soviet rule, such as the Baltic states, Poland and others, the event resonates differently, being less emotionally charged.
And yet, and this is why it’s surprising that this war has been absent from campaign topics and debates, because what’s at stake is the future of the European Union.
The future of Europe is at stake in Ukraine. Our political class avoids making this an essential issue, because there are already many issues at national level, on which public opinion is more focused.
And the risks are many: war fatigue, a certain powerlessness on the part of the European collective, which suggests that we may not have made the right choice in putting Ukraine in a position to win.
A Ukrainian defeat would be devastating for the continent, particularly in terms of the disunity it would generate, and would open the door to an uncontrollable world – which, in a way, it already is. It would also give China a free hand over Taiwan.
With the exception of Hungary, all European countries agree to support Ukraine. Military, financial and political support. The idea is to help Ukraine avoid losing out.
At the same time, there is the strategy towards Russia. And here we note a certain disagreement on European strategy towards Russia. There are two clans. The radical clan wants a war that will be won (the position of the Baltic States, Poland and, to a certain extent, France).
The other strategy involves diplomacy. Make sure that Ukraine wins, while at the same time starting negotiations and seeing what Russia will do in three or four years’ time with the newly created situation. Some believe that just because Putin has decided to go to war with us, doesn’t mean we should. There are other possible options.
For the time being, the war goes on, with the West continuing to provide massive aid to Ukraine, and the Chinese, Iranians and North Koreans continuing to provide underhand aid to Russia’s military-industrial complex.
It’s very difficult for everyone to project themselves. Public opinion in France is struggling to grasp what is at stake in the war in Ukraine. The level of concern is nowhere near the level of risk.
Marie France CHATIN.
Journalist.
Marie France CHATIN
Producer of the programme GEOPOLITIQUE on RFI
NB: We very rarely publish an op-ed. These give the author greater freedom of expression. We’ll be publishing them again from time to time.