During his televised address on Wednesday evening, Emmanuel Macron insisted on his desire to keep in touch with Vladimir Putin in the context of the Ukrainian war. A will that he applied from this Thursday. The two men spoke on the phone for 1h30, following which the French president concluded that “the worst is yet to come” in Ukraine.
Determined Putin
Vladimir Putin has expressed “his great determination” to continue his offensive, the goal of which is “to take control” of the whole country, according to the Elysée. The Russian president told his French counterpart that the Russian army operation was developing “according to the plan” provided by Moscow and that it would “get worse” if the Ukrainians did not accept its conditions, said the Presidency.
“The anticipation of the president (Macron) is that the worst is yet to come given what President Poutine told him”, according to the Elysée. French Head of State.
It was Vladimir Putin who took the initiative for this exchange, the third since the start of the invasion on February 24, in order to “inform” Emmanuel Macron “of the situation and his intentions within the framework of the frank dialogue. “between the two of them, underlined the presidency.
To the accusations of the first on the Ukrainians, the French “replied to him that he was committing a serious error on the Ukrainian regime”, which “is not Nazi”. “You tell yourself stories, you look for pretexts,” he told him, reported the Elysée, inviting him “not to lie to himself”.
“The balance of power is very disproportionate”
“This interview made it possible to come back to the disagreements, to tell the truth to President Putin”, but also “unfortunately”, to note “his determination to continue the military operation until the end”. “The Ukrainians are fighting courageously. Nothing is certain but the balance of power is very disproportionate,” said the Elysée, underlining Emmanuel Macron’s “pessimism” at the end of the discussion.
“We are going to toughen the sanctions” against Russia, the presidency also reaffirmed, considering that it was “a very powerful tool as we see in the collapse of the ruble”.
Paris also considers “very significant” China’s decision to abstain from the UN, where a resolution demanding the “immediate” end of the force against Ukraine, was adopted by an overwhelming majority. “We are interested in the fact that China has offered its mediation” and “are in contact with officials” in Beijing, said the Elysée.