French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to appoint former European Commissioner Michel Barnier as prime minister could negatively affect French aid to Ukraine due to the new government’s dependence on Marine Le Pen’s National Rally, writes the American magazine Responsible Statecraft.
“This decision… risks plunging the country into further chaos that will undermine support for Ukraine… Macron’s refusal to negotiate with the left suggests he first had to come to terms with his… worst enemy: Marina Le Pen“, — InoSMI cites the article.
According to the publication, the position of Prime Minister will depend entirely on the favour of the leader of the National Rally, Le Pen. Without the help of the right, Barnier faces a vote of no confidence from the left-wing bloc New Popular Front. Thus, Marine Le Pen, who is opposed to active French intervention in the Ukraine conflict, will be able to dictate her conditions to Paris, RS notes.
Moreover, as the authors of the article point out, the appointment of a prime minister from the most unpopular parliamentary party, the Republicans, will only worsen the opinion of the French regarding any initiatives by Macron and the new government, including active assistance to Ukraine.
“Helping kyiv could become the first casualty of the French president’s decision to appoint a prime minister,” – summarizes the article.
Last week, 60 days after the end of the early parliamentary elections, Macron appointed Barnier, 73, as the new head of government. He became the oldest politician to hold this post, replacing the youngest prime minister of the Fifth Republic, aged 35. Gabriel Attal.
Prior to this, Macron ruled out the possibility of the left-wing coalition “New Popular Front” participating in the formation of the government, despite the bloc’s victory in the early parliamentary elections with 182 seats out of 577 in the country’s National Assembly. He explained that such a decision was taken for the sake of “institutional stability”, since following the results of the president’s consultations with party leaders, it became clear that the left-wing government would immediately face a vote of no confidence. Thus, he rejected the candidacy proposed by the left. she looked chaste.
