Arthur de Laborde 6:45 a.m., February 27, 2022
Western allies adopted new financial sanctions against Moscow after the invasion of Ukraine, planning on Saturday to exclude many Russian banks from the Swift interbank platform, an essential cog in global finance.
On the side of the Elysée, we have also recorded the increase in deliveries of military equipment, with a very specific strategy in mind.
The war in Ukraine was at the heart of a new Defense Council on Saturday evening at the Elysée.
The third summoned by Emmanuel Macron since the beginning of the week.
And after two hours of discussions between the president and several of his ministers, France announced a new battery of measures.
Starting with the increase in deliveries of military equipment to Ukraine.
READ ALSO
- War in Ukraine: on the Polish border, the situation of refugees is deteriorating
Push Putin to declare a ceasefire
The fall of Kiev is not inevitable for the Elysée.
Defensive weapons and fuel will therefore be sent to support the Ukrainian resistance.
The balance of power is so disproportionate that it is impossible to equip Ukraine at the level of Russia, as an adviser explains.
>> Find Europe weekend morning - 6-8 in podcast and replay here
The strategy is therefore to make the cost of the war excessive in the eyes of Vladimir Putin in order to push him to initiate a ceasefire.
And this also involves new economic sanctions.
In addition to those decided with Westerners on the Swift interbank platform, national actions to freeze the assets of Russian personalities have been recorded.
Counter-propaganda measures, too, with the aim of targeting Russian influencers and media on European soil.
After these announcements, late Saturday evening, Emmanuel Macron once again wanted to hear from Volodymyr Zelensky.
This was the fourth telephone conversation between the French president and his Ukrainian counterpart in the space of 48 hours.