“Peace through weakness” was how French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu described the Trump administration’s position on Russia.
The critique comes after an unorthodox start to President Trump’s second term. In the 2024 election, the Trump campaign said that ending the war in Ukraine was a priority. However, the president avoided specific details on how he would go about ending the three-year-long Russian invasion.
Since being sworn into office, Trump has made concessions to Russia to prompt peace negotiations. The president has said that neither NATO membership nor a return to Ukraine’s 2014 borders are on the table in any potential discussions. Before talks have even started, Putin has achieved two plausible objectives he had going into the invasion: delaying Ukrainian NATO membership and continuing a precedent of encroaching on Ukrainian territory.
Inherently, the United States, Ukraine, and other European countries now have less leverage in future negotiations because America has already shown its hand. However, from the perspective of the Trump administration, Putin now seems open to diplomatic talks that have not happened since the start of the war.
There is a lot of merit in Lecornu’s accusations that Trump is appeasing the Putin regime. Since Trump tipped the scales in Russia’s favor, Putin carried out the single largest drone assault on Ukraine in the past three years. Kyiv and Brussels have been completely upended in their anti-Russia policy.
Despite Lecornu’s justifiable critique, this position reeks of hypocrisy. France expects the United States to support the European target of isolating Russia into submission. But when the United States seeks French support in isolating China, France’s President Emmanuel Macron says it would be irresponsible for Europe to be drawn into conflicts “that are not ours.”
Macron is a consistent advocate of European autonomy, a view that the EU should essentially operate as a third global power distinct from the American and Chinese “duopoly” on international influence. This is a completely reasonable belief. But it is based on an understanding that America and Europe do not always have the same priorities.
While Macron pushes for France to stay neutral in American foreign affairs, his defense minister decries American decisions that do not prioritize Europe. Macron’s government fantasizes about autonomy but is apoplectic when America acts independently. From the American perspective, France demands American help but refuses to reciprocate.
This kind of hypocrisy from our oldest ally sheds light on why Trump’s messaging about international politics is so effective. When Americans are struggling to make rent and pay for their groceries, they have still, far and away, provided the most aid to Ukraine. But does that afford reverence from our European allies? No. When the United States seeks the same support it has offered Europe, the French government refuses and says that its interests are independent of America’s.
This is not to say that Putin should be appeased, nor that supporting Ukraine was a poor investment. It is to say that our allies in Europe are acting as if assistance is a one-way street. When Trump grandstands about NATO’s exploitation of the United States, it does not fall on deaf ears. Millions of Americans agree with the president that the United States is not being shown the reverence it deserves. When you look at the hypocrisy of the French government, it seems pretty clear why his message is embraced by so many Americans.
