Macron Plans to Set Up Direct Communication Channel With Russia
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that he wanted to create a direct communication channel with Russia, arguing that peace in Ukraine was impossible without the European Union's contribution.
"No peace without the Europeans … You can negotiate without the Europeans if you prefer, but it will not bring a peace at the table. It is for the same reason that I have decided to establish a direct channel of communication with Russia, in full transparency with Ukraine and our European partners, and our American allies," he said at the Munich Security Conference.
The French president called on European partners to negotiate a new European security architecture, as the "European geography will not change. " Macron added that the EU sought to avoid escalation of the conflict with Russia and therefore had not sent troops to Ukraine, adding that Europe still adhered to that principle.
Commenting on the prospects for strategic European stability, Macron said that the EU nations would come up with a common position on arms control, as well as on the future of nuclear disarmament ahead of potential talks with Russia following the end of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty and the expiration of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START).
"All these questions have to be carefully prepared by the Europeans because we will have to be at the table of these discussion … And we have to be prepared … We just lived in an order where all these questions were partially fixed by very old treaties negotiated without the Europeans for the Europeans," he added.
Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and Russian special presidential envoy for economic cooperation with foreign countries, commented on Macron's speech about creating a communication channel with Russia, saying that "Europe is starting to change its approach - fearing Russia-US cooperation. "
Macron, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni have advocated, to varying degrees, for restarting dialogue between Europe and Russia. On January 30, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Russia would never abandon attempts to negotiate, but warned that it would likely be impossible to find consensus with Europe's current leaders.
Source: https://sputnikglobe.com