What’s Macron playing at? His macho posturing is a danger to us all

By his very mention of sending Western troops to Ukraine, Macron broke a taboo which had thus far held for a reason, writes Mary Dejevsky. There was strength in a unified public message to Putin – but the French president has changed all that

‘In the space of two weeks, he has elevated himself to become the West’s chief hawk on relations with Russia (in quite a crowded field)’ (Soazig de la Moissonnieere/Office of the French President)

Not being a fan of concepts such as male menopause and mid-life crisis, I can nonetheless quite understand the temptation to reach for such explanations in the light of recent sights and statements coming from Paris. What on earth has got into Emmanuel Macron? What sort of game – if it is a game – does he think he is playing?

In the space of two weeks, he has elevated himself to become the West’s chief hawk on relations with Russia (in quite a crowded field). He has single-handedly shattered the two-year show of unity on Ukraine carefully cultivated by Nato and the EU, and now, this smoothest, most urbane, most haughty of recent French presidents, is all over the French and international media in his boxing gear, throwing angry punches with a fighter’s glare. He’s not even facing an election. He was re-elected two years ago and cannot stand again.

Now I have probably had more time for Macron than many observers – in France or abroad. He took a risk in founding a new political movement to campaign for the presidency – and he won on a platform that represented a fresh, modern approach to politics. He had a clearer idea than most of how France needed to reform, even if he could not make it happen.