The speech delivered last night on television by French President Emmanuel Macron is among the main topics in the European press.
Macron called on the French people to be "firm" in the face of the threat coming from Russia, warning that it "knows no borders", notes the French newspaper "Monde".
Just as during the years of the coronavirus epidemic, Macron appeared on the screens dressed in black to make a solemn address to the French people, who are "justifiably concerned" about the rapprochement between the United States and Russia, which is happening at the expense of Ukraine, the newspaper commented.
This is a change of direction that accelerates the entry of Europeans into a "new era", Macron noted. "Faced with this dangerous world, it would be madness to remain mere spectators", the French president warned in a serious speech that lasted about 15 minutes.
The French head of state announced that major budgetary efforts would be made and called on the government and relevant authorities to find "the solutions of tomorrow".
The British newspaper "The Guardian" emphasizes the fact that the French president has warned his voters to prepare for a future without guaranteed support from the United States. "I want to believe that the United States will remain with us", Macron said. "But we must be ready if that does not happen", he added.
"The future of Europe should not be decided in Washington or Moscow, and yes - the threat from the East is returning. "And the impeccability of these 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall is over," Macron stressed.
At the same time, he tried to calm his voters' concerns about the threat of a transatlantic trade war after the United States threatened to impose tariffs on EU goods after tariffs imposed on China, Canada and Mexico.
France and Europe must prepare for the tariffs, but such a decision is "incomprehensible both for the American economy and for ours," Macron noted. He expressed hope that he would be able to dissuade US President Donald Trump, but stressed that Europe would respond if the tariffs were imposed anyway.
After his speech, the French president welcomed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to a working dinner at the French presidency ahead of an EU summit later today, the newspaper notes. "Guardian".
Macron talks about using nuclear deterrence to stop the Russian threat to Europe, notes the Portuguese newspaper "Publico". The French president proposed a debate on the issue of using French nuclear forces to guarantee the security of European allies.
Macron reiterated that peace in Eastern Europe "cannot be achieved at any cost and under Russian dictate". It cannot mean the capitulation of Ukraine, nor its disintegration. "Ukraine has the right to peace and security, which are also in our interest. That is why we are working with our British and German friends and with several other European countries," he stressed.
The French president announced that next week France will gather in Paris the chiefs of staff of the countries that are ready to guarantee future peace in Ukraine, notes the newspaper "Figaro". This "may also include the deployment of European forces. These forces will not go to fight today, they will not go to fight on the front line, but on the contrary, they will be there once peace is achieved to guarantee its full respect", the French head of state stressed.
"The homeland needs you and your commitment", Macron addressed the French. "France will follow only one course - that of the will to peace and freedom", he promised.
However important political decisions, military equipment and budgets are, "they will never replace the firmness of the nation", Macron stressed.
"Our generation will no longer receive the dividends of peace. It is up to us to ensure that our children will receive the fruits of our" efforts tomorrow, the French president warned.