Macron welcomes Zelenskyy's letter to Putin as "good initiative" and calls for direct talks

French President Emmanuel Macron has welcomed his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy's open letter to Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin and called for direct negotiations with Russia to end the war.

"I believe that this [Zelenskyy's open letter to Putin – ed.] is a good initiative, and it is good that discussions may resume," Macron said, speaking on the sidelines of the EU-Western Balkans summit in Montenegro.

Macron pointed out that Europeans are "the largest contributors to Ukraine's military effort" and therefore should at some point be present at the negotiating table on a peace plan, "because this concerns the architecture of peace and security for Europeans, given the geography".

"We have always supported direct negotiations between Ukraine and the Kremlin. I will be very straightforward with you. I believe that today it is Ukraine and Russia that can build both a ceasefire and a peace plan," the French president said.

In an open letter dated 4 June, Zelenskyy proposed that Putin agree on a date and meet in person to discuss ending the war.

On 25 April, during a visit to Azerbaijan, Zelenskyy said Ukraine is ready for another round of peace talks with Russia in a trilateral format on Azerbaijani territory.

Kaja Kallas, the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, believes that Russia is currently not in a sufficiently strong position in its war against Ukraine and therefore must be pushed to the negotiating table – something that China could help achieve.