Remember not so long ago when France's president blasted NATO as being "brain dead", wondering aloud what purpose it served? The biggest invasion Europe has seen since World War II now has the Alliance scrambling, shoring up defences on its eastern flank and trying to beef up its battle readiness in real time. We ask our guests about Thursday's NATO summit and the allies' red lines on Russia.
Exactly one month after Vladimir Putin launched what many predicted would be a lightning offensive, FRANCE 24 takes you to Irpin, one of those frontline suburbs of the capital Kyiv where Ukrainians now claim to be on the counter-offensive. Is it a turning point? Or are the Russians – who enjoy air supremacy – simply taking a breather while they pound major urban centres?
>> Watch our special report: The battle of Irpin: Meeting the Ukrainian resistance
Anti-air support is one of the options that NATO has to ponder as it decides whether it wants to contain the damage as the Kremlin's army flattens cities like Mariupol, or instead step up military assistance in what could lead to the kind of confrontation on the battlefield never seen at any time during the Cold War.
Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Juliette Laurain and Louise Guibert.
