French politicians can no longer avoid the issue. A debate on Ukraine is scheduled to take place in the Assemblée Nationale on Monday, March 3. It is an opportunity for all political groups to take a stand on the geopolitical upheavals – unprecedented since 1945 – that Donald Trump has spurred on since his arrival in the White House. His brutal approach to politics – as seen in his altercation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday – and some of his policies (anti-immigration measures, clear cuts in public spending) are also permeating the debate in France.

The French political world is struggling to digest the Trump spectacle. Whether it's shock, indignation, fascination or a wait-and-see attitude, very few are expressing their thoughts on the subject. "The parties are lost," sighed Jean-Louis Bourlanges, a former centrist MP reputed for his foreign policy expertise. "None of them offers a very clear analysis of the ins and outs of Trumpism." But now, faced with the prospect of American disengagement on the Ukrainian front, a degree of consensus is required to reaffirm the need for a European defense response.

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