Macron compares Russia to an ogre that must keep eating to survive

French President Emmanuel Macron has described Russia as a "predator, an ogre at our gates" that "needs to keep eating" to stay alive.

Source: European Pravda; Macron in an interview with LCI TV, a French television news channel, as quoted by Le Figaro, a French daily morning newspaper 

Details: Macron urged Europeans "not to be naive" about Russia, which he called "a constant destabilising force".

"President Putin has rarely honoured his commitments since 2007-2008. He has been a constant destabilising force. And he has sought to redraw borders to expand his power," Macron said. [N.B. Ukrainska Pravda does not recognise Putin as president – ed.]

The French president believes that "Russia has become a potential threat to many".

"A country that invests 40% of its budget in [military] equipment, which has mobilised an army of more than 1.3 million people, is not going to return to a state of peace and an open democratic system overnight.

Therefore, for its own survival, it needs to keep eating. That's how it is. And that means it's a predator, an ogre at our gates. I'm not saying that France will be attacked tomorrow, but ultimately, it's a threat to Europeans. [...] We must not be naive," Macron insisted.

Macron also said that the next two weeks will be "critical" for determining Ukraine's security guarantees.

Background:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that US President Donald Trump and European leaders agreed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will head a task force of national security advisers and NATO officials to draft security guarantees for Ukraine.
• Bloomberg reported that American and European officials will immediately begin working on providing Ukraine with reliable security guarantees in order to pave the way for a landmark meeting between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

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