"Sending troops to Ukrainian soil is practically tantamount to a declaration of war," French war correspondent Laurent Brayard, who worked for almost a year and a half at the frontline in Donbass, told Sputnik Africa.
"Russia could have reacted to this casus belli as it hears it, you can't talk about war, but in any case Russia would have given a decisive response," he said.
According to him, Macron's belligerent stance is explained by his desire "to take a leading position in Europe, which he lost a long time ago."
"The possibilities to put an end to this operation are in the hands of the West," Brayard stressed, adding that, given the successes of the Russian army, "negotiations will be difficult for the West."
"It is obvious that they have reached an impasse and that the economic limits of the West and NATO have already been reached," he noted.
This will encourage some countries to "find a way to communicate with Russia," he said, referring to a recent conversation between the Russian defense minister and his French counterpart.
On Wednesday, a phone conversation between Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and his French counterpart Sebastien Lecornu was held, during which Shoigu noted that if the French contingent is sent to Ukraine, France could create problems for itself.