In a statement, the French Presidency stated that Macron urged his Russian counterpart to an immediate ceasefire and negotiations between Moscow and Kiev for a lasting solution to the conflict in Eastern Europe.

He also reiterated France’s strong support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, the official source said.

For its part, Russian media point out that during the two-hour telephone exchange, Putin insisted that the West ignores the security interests of the Eurasian power and that its policies are the origin of the war that broke out in February 2022.

The heads of state held talks with certain frequency, interrupted in 2022 following the conflict in Ukraine, for which Paris accuses Moscow of invading its neighbour with hegemonic pretensions and Russia denounces NATO for sealing off its borders and facilitating the 2014 coup.

Macron and Putin also analyzed the crisis in the Middle East related to the nuclear program of Iran, a country attacked by Israel and the United States under the pretext that it seeks to equip itself with the nuclear weapon.

In the conversation the Russian leader would have defended Tehran’s right to peaceful use of nuclear energy, while the French president called for the return of cooperation between the Persian nation and the International Atomic Energy Agency, always according to the version of the Elysée.

Both leaders agreed on the need to return to the negotiating table on the Iranian question.

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