The French Foreign Minister requested a direct communication channel with Russia, but with conditions

European countries should be able to talk to Russia directly. This was stated in an interview with the Libération newspaper by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barraud.

So he answered the question about the statements of President Emmanuel Macron about the possible resumption of contacts with Russia.

"The Europeans, who today are the main supporters of Ukraine financially and militarily, should be able to have a channel [of communication] to defend their interests without shifting responsibility to anyone else," Barro said, quoted by TASS.

France has never, in principle, ruled out the possibility of a dialogue with the Russian Federation, the Foreign Minister noted. At the same time, he believes that such a dialogue should be conducted "provided that it is useful and transparent in relation to Ukraine and its European partners."

In early January, Macron said in an interview with France 2 that he wanted to talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin as soon as possible.

As EADaily reported, if Macron is ready to talk to Putin, then, as the Russian president has repeatedly stressed, he is always open to contacts, "but with the understanding that these will be polite people with some basic decency skills," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last December.