Are Macron and Scholtz selling out Ukraine with appeasement offers to a judgement-impaired Putin?

 In my last post I wrote that,

"Not only Olaf Scholtz but also Emmanuelle Macron, recent re-elected President Of France, is also coming under scrutiny for adopting the French version of Angela Merkel's appeasement of Putin.

As reported by Katya Adler (left),

"And while there's smouldering resentment that Germany has been too soft for too long on Moscow - driven largely, it's believed, by economic interests - many of the same critics are also impatient with Mr Macron for repeatedly pursuing diplomatic openings with Vladimir Putin." (BBC News : 10 May 2022) (my emphasis)

One should also not underestimate the French economic interests that underpin banker Macron's 'diplomatic tête-à-tête's' with Putin." (blog entry 23 May 2022)

And so it is that Macron and Scholtz have combined their forces to resucitate the "Angela Merkel appeasement of Putin policy."

But as reported by Oli Smith,

"France and Germany have been put on notice amid concerns in Ukraine that the two leading European Union member-states could strike a peace deal which rewards Russia. An advisor to the Ukrainian Parliament, Mykola Volkivskyi (right), revealed officials from Germany, Italy, and France are going to meet with Vladimir Putin "in the next few weeks". However, he said any attempt to surrender Ukrainian territory without Ukrainian consent would be "unacceptable"." (Express : 27 May 2022) (my emphasis)

The Sun : YouTube : 26 May 2022

As Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky also says,

"But still in [ the recent] Davos [meeting] (22 -26 May 2022) ... Mr. Kissinger emerges from the deep past and says that a piece of Ukraine should be given to Russia ... suppossedly that there is no alienation of Russia from Europe. You get the impression that Mr Kissinger's calendar is not 2022 but 1938, and he thinks he's talking to an audience not in Davos but in Munich" (video above)

And as now reported by Aleks Phillips,

"Those nations closest to Russia are said to be uneasy about the willingness of Emmanuel Macron, the French President, and Olaf Scholz, to speak with the Russian President while he continues to attack an ally. The latest phone call has reportedly reignited suspicions European leaders may push for Ukraine to cede territory to Russia in order to bring a swift end to the conflict. " (Express : 29 May 2022) (my emphasis)

Aleks Phillips goes on to report that,

"Earlier today (Sunday), Robert Habeck, Germany’s economic minister, told a press conference European unity on oil and energy boycotts were “already starting to crumble”.
...
Marko Mihkelson, chairman of the Estonian parliament’s foreign affairs committee, told the FT: “It is incredible how the leaders of France and Germany are inadvertently paving the way for new acts of violence by Russia." (ibid Aleks Phillip)

There is something rather strange in the near urgency of this call between Putin, Macron, and Sholtz.

Reports are now emerging that Putin's health is deteriorating.

As reported by Nigel Nelson (left),

Vladimir Putin has been given a maximum of three years to live by doctors, according to a Russian intelligence source. The FSB officer said the Russian president, 69, “has a severe form of rapidly progressing cancer.” And he added: “He has no more than two to three years to stay alive.” The spy said the disease means Putin is also losing his sight. (The Mirror : 28 May 2022) (my emphasis) (cf also: John Ward & Alex Grove (MSN News: Yorkshire Live 6 March 2022), Maryam Zakir-Hussain (The Independent : 30 May 2022) , Marion Langford  (news.com.au : 29 May 2022))

Nelson further reports that,

"Reports last week citing Kremlin sources claimed that Putin underwent successful cancer surgery 14 days ago." (ibid Nigel Nelson)

As Sir Richard Dearlove (right), former Head of MI6, states in an interview with Piers Morgan,

Piers Morgan : "If he [Putin] is, say, terminally ill with a cancer or something, and only he knows this ... Is that more dangerous because that may encourage him to do something reckless?"

Sir Richard Dearlove : "Well I think if he's seriously ill his judgement may be impaired ... So you have a collision, as it were, between the geopolitics of Russia and its loss of Ukraine and Putin's health ... "

Piers Morgan : Sky News : 30 May 2022

And yet, given that Putin's judgement may be impaired because of ill health and, in the words of Sir Richard, "So you have a collision, as it were, between the geopolitics of Russia and its loss of Ukraine and Putin's health", why is Macron and Scholtz having a telephone tête-à-tête with a possible judgement-impaired Putin to try and appease him with ..... with what????

A slice of Ukraine????

Added to which, as reported by BBC News,

"Russia's ambassador to Britain has told the BBC he does not believe his country will use tactical nuclear weapons in the war against Ukraine.
.....
Andrei Kelin (left) said that according to Russian military rules, such weapons are not used in conflicts like this.
......
He also described allegations of war crimes in the town of Bucha as "a fabrication". (BBC News : 29 May 2022) (my emphasis)

Andrei Kelin may "not believe" that Putin will, in his current state of judgement-impairement, use tactical nuclear weapons, but Putin's propaganda machine in Russia is of another opinion. (video below : Russian TV 24 and 25 May 2022)

Then we also have that dyed-in-the-wool Soviet Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov (left), stating that,

"In response to a quoted question about the possibility of Russia nuking the adversary, the Russian Foreign Minister did not rule out the use of nuclear weapons in the future, emphasizing that Russia is fighting with conventional weapons “at this stage.”

“We are conducting our operation using conventional weapons. At this stage, it’s conventional weapons. Fighting for mother-truth,” the chief of Russian diplomacy said sarcastically." (Ukrinform : 30 May 2022) (my emphasis)

Which raises the question :

"What appeasement offers for a ceasefire in Putin's war with Ukraine were put before a possible judgement-impaired Putin by French President Macron and German Chancellor Scholtz?

(to be continued)