Macron admits possibility of military operations against Russia

French President Emmanuel Macron has admitted the possibility of Paris conducting military operations against Russian forces in Ukraine in the future, saying, however, that such actions would not be initiated by him.

"It is possible that at some point — I do not wish it, and I will not initiate it — the need will arise to conduct operations on the ground, these or other, to counter Russian forces," Macron said in an interview with French newspaper Le Parisien released on Sunday.

Many European countries share France's position, Macron added. When asked whether the French general staff was developing plans for such operations, the president said it was France's duty to prepare for all possible scenarios.

Following a Paris-hosted conference on Ukraine held on February 26, Macron said Western leaders had discussed the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine and, although no consensus had been reached in this regard, nothing could be ruled out.

EU countries, including Poland and Germany, hastened to dismiss such plans. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that NATO had no intention of sending its forces to Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia had taken notice of Macron's remarks and that some of the countries that participated in the Paris meeting on Ukraine had quite a "wise assessment" of the potential dangers of being involved in a conflict with Russia.