The media emphasizes that Macron and Prime Minister of Great Britain Kira Starkmer, who heads a group of countries planning to reach any agreement on the ceasefire in Ukraine, was called the most likely interlocutors with Moscow.
But the publication writes that Starmer does not plan to negotiate with Putin as part of the UK efforts to support the defense of Ukraine. A source in the Champs Elysees said that Macron could take this role, “when the corresponding time will come.”
When asked whether it is time to resume contacts with Putin, the representative of the Champs Elysees replied: “It seems that there is no.”
Journalists emphasized that Macron retained diplomatic channels with Moscow longer than any of the European supporters of Ukraine, despite acute criticism. However, as the authors write, he stopped any direct contacts with the Kremlin, when it became clear that Putin did not intend to stop the war.
Context
On November 15, 2024, the German Chancellor Olaf Sholz for the first time since December 2022 was talking on the phone with Putin. He was the last of the large European leaders who communicated with the head of the Kremlin. During the hourly conversation, Scholz condemned Russian aggression against Ukraine and called on Putin to stop and withdraw the occupation forces from the Ukrainian territory, the German government website said.
According to media reports, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky asked Sholts not to call Putin on the phone, as it will only help him, reducing the isolation, and would not bring peace. Zelensky called this call “Pandora's box” due to the risk of weakening Putin's insulation.
On March 9, 2025, Macron at a press conference in Brussels said that he was ready to talk with Putin when he and the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky and European partners will consider that time came, wrote Le Monde.
On April 3, Finland President Alexander Stubb said that the “coalition of those who wish” agreed that at least one European leader should resume contact and reach a dialogue with the Russian Federation. According to Stubb, France or Great Britain should speak with the illegitimate President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin.
