Dialogue Only Solution To Ukraine Conflict, Macron Says

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 05th December, 2022) French President Emmanuel Macron says he maintains contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin and believes that negotiations are the only way out of the Ukraine crisis.

"I think it's important to convey the message that this is the Ukrainians to decide it, the only way to find a solution would be through negotiations. I don't see a military option on the ground," Macron said on CBS news' "60 Minutes."

The French president shared his perception that Putin feels "resentment" toward the West, particularly the United States and the European Union, stemming from the conviction that the West seeks to destroy Russia. This has never been the French outlook, Macron said, adding that Russia and France share cultural and historic ties.

"I always maintain regular discussions and direct contact with President Putin, because - I believe that the best way to - to reengage is to preserve this direct channel," Macron said.

On Saturday, Macron told Le Parisien daily that he plans to talk to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of phone talks with Putin.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik on Saturday that there is no set date yet for a phone conversation between the Russian President and his French counterpart.

Macron paid an official visit to the US from November 29 to December 2. He met with US President Joe Biden in Washington on Thursday to discuss the situation in Ukraine.

The French president said on Saturday that Paris and Washington should make preparations to facilitate dialogue between Russia and Ukraine.

Earlier this year, Zelenskyy refused to negotiate with Russia as long as President Vladimir Putin remains in office, but changed his stance later and laid out conditions for starting dialogue in a video statement released on November 8, shortly after reports emerged in US media that the Biden administration was privately encouraging Kiev to demonstrate its readiness to negotiate with Moscow.

The Kremlin said on Friday that Putin has always been and continues to remain open to negotiations on Ukraine, as evident from his attempts to initiate dialogue with the US, NATO and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) even before the start of hostilities.