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Macron, Putin held two-hour phone conversation — TV channel

Before the conversation with the Russian leader, the French head of state met at the Elysee Palace with France’s former President Nicolas Sarkozy
French President Emmanuel Macron EPA-EFE/LUDOVIC MARIN/POOL
French President Emmanuel Macron
© EPA-EFE/LUDOVIC MARIN/POOL

PARIS, May 3. /TASS/. French President Emmanuel Macron held a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. According to France’s BFM TV channel, the conversation lasted over two hours.

The conversation between the two leaders was the first one since Macron was re-elected on April 24. Prior to that, the two presidents talked on March 29. Last Saturday, Macron held a conversation with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.

According to Le Figaro, before the conversation with the Russian leader, the French head of state met at the Elysee Palace with France’s former President Nicolas Sarkozy.

In early February, Macron visited Moscow and Kiev for talks with his Russian and Ukrainian colleagues. He maintains regular contacts both with Putin and Zelensky.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation in order to protect people "who have been suffering from abuse and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years." The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories. Following this, the US, the EU, the UK and a number of other countries announced the introduction of sanctions against Russian legal entities and private individuals.