French Defence Minister calls Shoigu for the first time since 2022
4 April 2024 11:31
French Defence Minister Sebastian Lecorneau has called Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu for the first time since October 2022. This was reported by the French Ministry of Defence, Komersant ukrainskyi 
reports.
The reason for the call was the shooting in Moscow’s Crocus Hall. According to the ministry, Lecorneuil expressed solidarity with the victims and assured Shoigu that Ukraine had nothing to do with the attack.
“He confirmed that France has no information that would establish a link between this attack and Ukraine. He called on Russia to stop any instrumentalisation [of this event],”
– the ministry said.
Lecorneu also allegedly condemned Russia’s “aggressive war” against Ukraine.
The Russian Defence Ministry hastened to publish a statement saying that the conversation took place “at the urging” of the French side. In response, it said that “the Kyiv regime does nothing without the approval of Western curators”, and the Russian Federation hopes at least that the French special services are not behind it.
Regarding Macron’s statements about the possible deployment of a French contingent to Ukraine, Shoigu noted that in this case, it would create problems for France itself.
Most importantly, the Russian Ministry of Defence saw the call as a sign of readiness for dialogue on Ukraine.
“The readiness for dialogue on Ukraine was noted. The initial provisions could be based on the Istanbul Peace Initiative. Holding a meeting in Geneva without Russia’s participation is pointless,”
– the Russian Defence Ministry said.
France has already reacted to this message. An anonymous government official told Reuters that the Russians are not telling the truth.
“This is not true. At no point have we shown any readiness for dialogue on Ukraine, negotiations or anything like that,”
– the French government source said.
