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Will Macron’s visit to Ukraine and Russia cool the escalating tensions?
French President Emmanuel Macron is set to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow and the leader of Ukraine, during meetings that will take place over two days
It is hoped the French President can assist in cooling tensions with the two nations, as other Western world leaders try to avoid a major conflict.
Mr Macron will meet Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv a day after his February 7 meeting with Putin, who is right now in China for the Beijing Olympics.
Macron has said that finding a negotiated path towards de-escalating heated tensions over Ukraine was a priority, even as the United States confirmed that it was sending 3,000 extra troops to Poland and Romania after Russia amassed troops near Ukraine.
The French President held separate phone calls with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders on Thursday to try to make progress on the status of the Donbass region as part of efforts to defuse tensions.
Russia’s President Putin is right now in China for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Macron hopes that being able to communicate with Putin one-on-one as well as Ukraine’s Zelensky will be well received during a time where the world watches every move happening on the border of the two nations.