Asked about the future of the Ukrainian conflict and the nuclear threat, Nathalie Loiseau believes that "the worst is already what is happening, that is to say a war of invasion, where is possible that war crimes are being committed".

While the Ukrainian power plant in Zaporozhye has just been targeted by fire, the president of the security and defense sub-committee of the European Parliament wishes to recall that "we do not touch a nuclear power plant. The Russians did it ", they took a considerable risk. The Ukrainians, in an absolutely remarkable way since the beginning of the conflict, are doing everything to ensure the safety and security of their power plants, but we must stop playing with fire and in particular nuclear fire."

"As regards arms deliveries by the European Union, this is a historic turning point," she said.

"It took a war for Europe to realize that more had to be done in terms of defence."

"We did not want to be co-belligerent. What we want is for the war to end as soon as possible. This is why we are going very firmly with unprecedented sanctions against the regard to Russia, very great support for Ukraine with the sending of arms to help a population which is threatened to defend itself, but also the diplomatic channel, however unrewarding it may be [...]. objective is that the Russians understand that they have everything to lose and nothing to gain by continuing this war,” she recalls.

“I think we are at year 1 of European defence. We need all the tools to defend ourselves, to defend our European model, to defend our freedoms, to defend democracies. is attacked today in Ukraine. The Ukrainians are attacked for what they are. They have chosen democracy, to turn to Europe and that is what is unbearable to Vladimir Putin."

"France is at the rendezvous of European solidarity since we are sending more troops to the Baltic countries and to Romania", underlines Nathalie Loiseau.

"This European solidarity is essential. [...] There is not a single European nation which is a large country which could defend itself completely alone. It is a question of alliance, of solidarity and of pooling of our abilities."

On NATO, the MEP sees a positive development: "NATO is waking up, it's a good thing, but let's not put all our eggs in NATO's basket. We cannot permanently outsource our security to others than ourselves."

"We can clearly see that the hour of European defense has come. If our Europe, we want to defend it and defend what we are, we must have the means to do so", considers Nathalie Loiseau about the establishment of a European army.

After Ukraine's application for EU membership, other countries are following the same path.

Requests that are "not surprising", according to Nathalie Loiseau.

"We must live up to this hope. We have people who today are fighting because they want to be European. Do you realize the power of attraction and the luck that we have we, Europeans? [...] Can we remain deaf to this call? No. Not to hear it, it would be a moral fault but it would be not to believe in ourselves.

Is it still time for diplomacy?

"The guns will have to be silenced and the war will have to stop and someone will have made the effort to talk non-stop with Vladimir Putin to convince him. [...] We must maintain this channel of dialogue to obtain achievements, however slight they may be in humanitarian matters, and then if Vladimir Putin can be convinced that he has everything to lose in the war, he must be able to tell someone and that someone will be Emmanuel Macron.

To give your opinion on the place of the European Union in the world, go to the platform of the Conference on the Future of Europe.

Program prepared by Isabelle Romero, Sophie Samaille and Georgina Robertson.

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