Hours after speaking by phone with his Russian counterpart, French President Emmanuel Macron accused Vladimir Putin of launching a "brutal attack" on Ukraine, describing it as a "colonial, retaliatory violation of international law." In a speech marking the 78th anniversary of the Allied landings in Southern France, which was occupied by the Nazis during World War II, Macron stated, "Since Vladimir Putin launched his brutal attack on Ukraine, war has returned to European soil, just hours away from us."
Macron added that Putin seeks to impose his "colonial will" on Europe, evoking the "ghosts of the spirit of revenge" in a "blatant violation of the integrity of nations." He warned French citizens that the energy crisis and the economic crisis resulting from the war, which Europe is facing, have not yet ended, describing them as the "price of our freedom and values."
Earlier on Friday, Macron spoke with Putin for more than an hour to urge Russia to accept Ukraine's conditions for allowing UN nuclear inspectors to visit the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. The two leaders also discussed efforts to export grains and other foodstuffs from Ukraine. This was their twentieth conversation of this kind this year, but the first in three months.
