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Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to hold talks with French President Emmanuel Macron. Along with this, the Russian President has also put a condition. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that this conversation will take place only if the talks are held with respect and have a clear objective.
According to Russian media, on Friday President Macron said that some countries have already contacted Russia. Europeans and Ukrainians should find a framework to restart negotiations. Macron said that talking to Putin could be useful. Without any format, the EU runs the risk of talking amongst itself, while the negotiators go to talk to Russia alone, which is not right.
On Sunday, Peskov told RIA Novosti that the talks should not be used to read speeches from one side to the other, but should focus on understanding each other’s points of view. The Kremlin spokesman further said, “Putin is always ready to explain his points honestly and consistently in detail.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Putin has repeatedly stressed that he is ready for talks, but only with polite people who have some decency.
European countries have approved giving interest-free loan of 90 billion euros i.e. 105 billion dollars to Ukraine, although many European countries have not agreed to it. Additionally, due to internal differences, a consensus could not be reached on using frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine.
At the same time, Putin has sharply criticized European countries, terming the use of frozen Russian assets as plunder. The last direct contact between Putin and Macron was through a phone call in July 2025. This was the first conversation between the two leaders since the beginning of the attacks on Ukraine in 2022.
