French leader Emmanuel Macron has expressed a desire to “continue dialogue” with Russian President Vladimir Putin
Russia has never refused a dialogue with France and is ready to engage in negotiations “to the extent that our counterparts are ready for that,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly signaled his willingness to engage in meaningful negotiations with foreign powers, Peskov told reporters when asked for comment on the latest remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron.
“The president has repeatedly stated his openness to negotiations, especially constructive negotiations, meant to achieve certain results,” the spokesman explained.
“We are ready for dialogue to the extent that our counterparts are ready for it. There are absolutely no conditions for this,” he added.
Macron touched upon the prospects of negotiating with the Russian president while speaking on the Generation Do It Yourself podcast. Although the French president confirmed that he has had no contacts with Putin in recent months, he expressed his readiness to speak to the Russian leader since he purportedly “believes in the power of dialogue.”
“I would continue the dialogue with Vladimir Putin,” Macron stated. “I believe that it is always important to continue dialogue.”
While Macron has repeatedly signaled his readiness to engage in a “meaningful” and “peace-oriented” dialogue with Moscow, the French leader also previously said he saw no actual opportunities for negotiations with the Kremlin.
Over the past few months, Macron has sought to assert himself as the leading backer of Kiev and has made increasingly belligerent statements aimed at Russia. He has also floated the possibility of sending French – and other Western – troops to the battlefield. In March, Macron branded Russia “an adversary,” but stopped short of declaring it an “enemy,” while insisting Paris was ready to make any “decisions necessary to prevent Russia’s victory” in the conflict.
