PARIS: The deployment of Western combat troops to fight against Russia on the ground in Ukraine is not on the table but new ways need to be found to battle the Russian attack, France's defence minister said on Friday.
French President Emmanuel Macron last month sent shockwaves around Ukraine when he refused to rule out any option in the conflict, including the sending of Western troops.
Despite troubled reactions from allies, including notably Germany, he has in recent days appeared to double down on the remarks, this week urging the West not to be "cowards".
Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu however said the furore caused by Macron's initial remarks after a conference of Ukraine's European allies on February 26 was due to them being "taken out of context".
"There were hypotheses clearly put on the table but not combat ground troops as may have been said here or there," he told broadcaster BFMTV, noting that Macron had reaffirmed that France would not be a "co-belligerent" in the conflict.
"But between the transfer of arms and co-belligerence -- in other words direct war with Russia -- have we done everything within that space? Are there paths that we can explore? And notably paths involving a military presence?" he asked.
Lecornu said this could include mine clearance and the training of Ukrainian soldiers on Ukrainian soil. "The more Ukraine needs to conscript, to raise up its army, the greater the need will be to ramp up training," he added.
He also announced that three French companies would create partnerships to produce and maintain weapons and spare parts on Ukrainian soil. They are the Delair drone manufacturer, Nexter, the French branch of the Franco-German company KNDS which produces the Caesar canons delivered to Kyiv, and Arquus, a French manufacturer of land military equipment which has a contract to maintain armoured vehicles.
Macron on Thursday hosted French party leaders to clarify his policy on Ukraine ahead of parliament debates next week. Several of the leaders expressed unease afterwards that he had made clear there were "no limits" to France's support of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was due in Istanbul on Friday for talks with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the war with Russia and navigation on the Black Sea.
Zelensky's office said the pair will discuss Kyiv's proposal to end the conflict -- as well as "Black Sea navigation security, global food stability, and the release of Ukrainian prisoners and political prisoners held by the Russian state."
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