法國獲勝的馬克龍加大了在烏克蘭的武器及參與

Recently Yahoo News on line reported the following:

France's victorious Macron boosts weapons, stakes in Ukraine

ASSOCIATED PRESS

JOHN LEICESTER

Mon, April 25, 2022, 11:31 PM

PARIS (AP) — When Vladimir Putin congratulated Emmanuel Macron on his re-election as France's president and wished him “success in your activities,” the Russian leader probably was being more polite than sincere.

As he embarks on a second term, with the intention of keeping France at the forefront of international efforts to force Putin to change course in Ukraine, Macron has given a green light for the delivery of modern artillery pieces to Kyiv that could help stem Russia’s new offensive in the east of the country.

Firing six rounds per minute over 40 kilometers (25 miles) or more, the truck-mounted Caesar cannons will allow Ukrainian crews to pound Russian troops from afar, then move and pound them again. Used to great effect against Islamic State forces in Iraq and in other conflicts, they represent a step up in France's assistance to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government.

In another remarkable move, Macron is talking openly about the guns, lifting a veil of secrecy he'd thrown over French military aid. The delivery and the publicity together signal a tougher line from Macron in his dealings with Putin — talking less and engaging more in brinksmanship with the Kremlin.

"Initially, we were a bit shy to show what was being provided," said retired Gen. Dominique Trinquand, a former head of France's military mission at the United Nations. But “we have been escalating week after week, testing the reaction."

Macron was in the closing stages of his presidential re-election campaign when he name-dropped the Caesar cannons in an April 21 interview with the newspaper Ouest-France. He also mentioned Milan anti-tank missiles, although those supplies had already been reported.

Macron didn't give numbers. Citing unidentified French sources, Ouest-France said 12 Caesars will be drawn from the French arsenal and that 40 Ukrainian artillery soldiers were arriving for training at a military base in the south of France.

Macron said his “red line” remains not entering into direct conflict with Russia, but within that limit, “we must provide maximum help to the Ukrainians."

“We are delivering consequential equipment,” he said. "We need to continue down this path.”

His armed forces minister tweeted that thousands of shells would also be part of the delivery. Sunil Nair, an analyst who specializes in artillery systems for the defense publication Janes, said the cannons could be used independently of each other or together as a battery.

"It does give you firepower, no doubt about it," he said. “It's a question of how they use it and where they use it.”

Before and after Russia's Feb. 24 invasion, Macron had kept an open line with Putin. But the horrors discovered by Ukrainian troops as they retook control of villages near Kyiv once Russian soldiers withdrew gave Macron pause. His office said last week that the two leaders haven't spoken since March 29.

Macron says that, eventually, he'll need to pick up the phone again — because not talking to Putin will allow the leaders of China, India and Turkey to take the lead in trying to negotiate the peace, whenever that time comes.

“We’ll have to prepare a cease-fire at some stage, and Europe will have to be around the table,” Macron said last week.

In the meantime, French weapons will do some of the talking — in hopes of adding to the pressure on Putin.

“The best way to have successful talks is to have successful Ukrainians throwing back the Russian invasion,” said François Heisbourg, a French analyst on defense and security questions at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

The Caesars will allow their crews to go hunting for Russian artillery pieces being used in eastern Ukraine that are indiscriminately pummeling civilian targets.

“The Americans and the Poles and the Slovaks and the Belgians and the French and the Canadians are all sending heavy artillery to the Ukrainians,” Heisbourg said.

“That's a really, really big improvement to the situation of Ukraine in the new phase of the war.”

(Associated Press writers Sylvie Corbet and Angela Charlton contributed.)

Translation

巴黎（美聯社）- 當普京祝賀馬克龍再次當選法國總統並祝愿他“在你的活動中取得成功”時，這位俄羅斯領導人可能是禮貌多於真誠。

當他開始第二個任期時，為了讓法國站在迫使普京改變烏克蘭路線的國際努力的最前線，馬克龍已經為向基輔運送現代火砲開了綠燈，這可能有助於阻止俄羅斯在該國東部的新進攻。

車載凱撒大砲在 40 公里（25 英里）或更長距離內每分鐘發射 6 發子彈，將允許烏克蘭機組人員從遠處攻擊俄羅斯軍隊，然後移動並再次攻擊他們。大砲曾在伊拉克和其他衝突中對打擊伊斯蘭國勢力產生了巨大效果，它們代表著法國加大對澤連斯基總統的政府的援助。

在另一個引人注目的舉動中，馬克龍公開談論槍炮，揭開了他對法國軍事援助的保密面紗。同時交付輸送和發出宣傳,表明馬克龍在與普京打交道時採取了更強硬的立場 - 少說話，對克里姆林宮多用安全極限邊緣政策。

“最初，我們有點不想展示所提供的內容”; 已退休的 Dominique Trinquand 將軍說，他曾是法國駐聯合國軍事代表團的前負責人。但是 “我們一直在一星期又一星期地升級，測試反應。”

馬克龍在 4 月 21 日接受法國報紙 Ouest-France 採訪時點名了凱撒大砲，當時他正處於總統連任競選的最後階段。他還提到了米蘭反坦克導彈，儘管這些供應已經被報導過。

馬克龍沒有給出數字。 Ouest-France 援引未具名的法國消息人士稱，將從法國軍火庫中抽取12名凱撒大砲，40名烏克蘭砲兵將抵達法國南部的一個軍事基地接受訓練。

馬克龍表示，他的“紅線”仍然是不會與俄羅斯發生直接衝突，但在這個限度內，“我們必須向烏克蘭人提供最大的幫助。”

“他說: 我們正在提供相應的設備”; “我們需要繼續沿著這條路走下去。”

他的武裝部隊部長在推特上表示，數千枚砲彈也將作為交付的一部分。專門研究國防出刊版物Janes 火砲系統的分析師 Sunil Nair 說，這些大砲可以單獨使用，也可以作為重型火砲的強化砲台一起聯合使用。

他說:“毫無疑問，它確實給了你火力”;  “問題是他們如何使用它,以及在哪裡使用它。”

在俄羅斯 2 月 24 日入侵之前和之後，馬克龍一直與普京保持公開的聯繫。但是，當俄羅斯士兵撤退，烏克蘭軍隊在重新控制基輔附近的村莊發現恐怖行為時, 使馬克龍停頓了一下。他的辦公室上週表示，這兩位領導人自 3 月 29 日以來一直沒有講話。

馬克龍說，最終，他將需要再次拿起電話 - 因為不與普京交談將使中國、印度和土耳其的領導人能夠帶頭嘗試和平談判，當時機到來時。

馬克龍上週表示： “我們必須在某個一階段準備停火，歐洲必須在談判桌旁。”

與此同時，法國的武器會做一些講話 - 希望增加對普京的壓力。

國際戰略研究所國防和安全問題的法國分析師 François Heisbourg 說： “成功談判的最佳方式是讓烏克蘭人成功擊退俄羅斯的入侵。”

凱撒大砲將允許其隊員去尋找在烏克蘭東部的俄羅斯火砲，這些火砲無差别地地打擊平民目標。

Heisbourg說 :“美國人、波蘭人、斯洛伐克人、比利時人、法國人和加拿大人都在向烏克蘭人發送重型火砲”。

“這對烏克蘭的局勢來說, 在新的戰爭階段裡, 是一個非常非常大的改善。”

So, with the intention of keeping France at the forefront of international efforts to force Putin to change course in Ukraine, Macron gives modern artillery pieces to Ukraine.  In his calculation, Macron prepares a cease-fire that may come at some stage, and ensures that Europe will be around the negotiation table.