PARIS, March 25. /TASS/. France is ready to work with with Russia to fight terrorism, French President Emmanuel Macron said, commenting on Friday’s terror attack on Crocus City Hall near Moscow.
"We are in talks at all levels, both technical and ministerial, to possibly offer our cooperation based on the information that we have at our disposal and that could be of use to the Russian side," the French leader said upon arriving in French Guiana, according to a video of his meeting with the press posted on the French presidency’s page on X.
While initial exchanges will be made at this level, "any further [communication] will depend on how the situation evolves," Macron said, when asked if he could revive dialogue with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
According to Macron, France has seen its share of terrorism recently. Thus, the terrorist organization Islamic State (or IS, banned in Russia - TASS), which is believed to be behind the Moscow attack, has attempted several acts of terror on French soil in the past few months, he added.
On the evening of March 22, a terrorist attack targeted the Crocus City Hall music venue in Krasnogorsk, Moscow Region, just over the Moscow city limits. According to the Russian Investigative Committee, the current death toll is 137, but may rise. The Moscow Region Health Ministry said that 182 people were injured.
Eleven individuals suspected of being involved in the terrorist attack have been apprehended, including four gunmen who were detained in the Bryansk Region, southwest of Moscow, as they attempted to seek refuge by crossing the nearby Ukrainian border.
President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address that, according to preliminary information, the Ukrainian side had prepared "a window" in the border especially for the terrorists to cross undetected. He promised to identify and punish all those who were behind the attack on Crocus City Hall and declared March 24 a day of national mourning for the victims.