French President Macron does not want to rush the start of dialogue with Russian President Putin and emphasizes the necessity of preparations. He plans to restore communication with Moscow only after thorough coordination with European partners.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that there was no rush to start a dialogue with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. Therefore, she does not plan to talk to him on the phone in the next few days. TASR informs about it according to the report of the AFP agency.
- Macron does not want to talk to Putin on the phone yet.
- They want to prepare for the dialogue with Russia first.
- Communication channels were cut after the invasion of Ukraine.
- Macron asks for security guarantees for Ukraine and Europe.
- The resumption of dialogue should be well prepared and organized.
“It’s not a question of days, preparations are needed. I think now we need to work among ourselves, on what we want to ask (him),” Macron declared after the meeting of EU leaders in Belgium.
Restoration of communication channels
The French president announced his intention to restore communication channels with his Russian counterpart in December. These are mostly closed after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
At the beginning of January, Macron sent his adviser Emmanuel Bonn to Moscow to discuss the preparations. “As Europeans, we have to prepare for this so that we are ready when the time is right to discuss with the Russians,” the head of the Elysee Palace said on Thursday.
Security and the future of Europe
“And what do we want? We want security guarantees for Ukraine, but we also want things for Europeans,” Macron said, adding that among his priorities were “issues of prosperity, the future of our Europe and the security architecture.”
In an interview published on Tuesday, the French president again hinted at the possibility of resuming dialogue with Putin. He argued that it should be “well organized” with European partners but without “too many participants”.
