France to invite Ukraine, its allies and NATO chief to video conference on 7 March

France invited Ukraine's Foreign Minister, foreign and defence ministers of Kyiv's main allies, and the NATO Secretary General to a video conference on 7 March to show a "united stance" and develop solid proposals to strengthen support for Ukraine. Source: Reuters, which has the relevant invitation from Paris at its disposal, as reported by European Pravda  Details: The invitation says that participants of the meeting will discuss ways to accelerate the provision of key capabilities, particularly the supply and production of artillery shells, as well as the establishment of a system that will enable partners to improve the release of their ammunition stocks and create new options for medium and long-range missile supplies.

The invitation says that, "without becoming parties to the conflict ourselves," participants of the meeting will also investigate the possibility of assistance through cyber defence, mine clearance, border security with Belarus, and coordination of equipment production and maintenance in Ukraine.

It does not mention sending a non-combatant contingent to Ukraine, despite French officials indicating that this is possible, Reuters points out. Ministers, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, and EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell all received an invitation on behalf of the French Foreign and Defence Ministers. The latter two were not invited to the informal Allied summit in Paris on 26 February.

Unnamed diplomats confirmed to the news agency that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba will also attend the meeting via video link. Another topic to be discussed is support for countries directly threatened by Russia, particularly neighbouring Moldova. Three diplomats told Reuters that Moldovan President Maia Sandu would travel to Paris on Thursday for separate talks with Macron.

Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron stated while talking about Russia's war against Ukraine that it was time to step up and not be cowardly. Last week Macron stated that "it should not be ruled out" that Western troops might be sent to Ukraine. Later he added that his remarks, which have caused a stir, were carefully thought through.

These remarks caused a negative reaction of the governments of some allied states, the leaders of which stressed that they would not send troops to Ukraine. While the majority of NATO member states excluded the sending of troops to Ukraine, including such powerful players as Germany, the UK and the US, Gabrielius Landsbergis, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, said on 28 February that he was thankful to Macron for the debates he had started. Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson for the Russian president, stated that the presence of NATO troops on the territory of Ukraine would lead to a direct conflict between the Alliance and the Russian Federation, escalating the situation.

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