French President Emmanuel Macron flies to Moscow on Monday in a risky diplomatic move, seeking commitments from Russian President Vladimir Putin to dial down tensions with Ukraine, where Western leaders fear the Kremlin plans an invasion.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, greets French President Emmanuel Macron, at a conference in Berlin in January 2020. The two leaders are poised to meet again to discuss Ukraine. Photo: AFP
Before talks in Moscow with Putin, Macron called for a "new balance" to protect European states and appease Russia.
He restated that the sovereignty of Ukraine was not up for discussion.
Macron has made a frenetic series of phone calls with Western allies, Putin and the Ukrainian leader over the past week. He will follow up on Tuesday with a visit to Kyiv, staking a lot of political capital on a mission that could prove embarrassing if he returns empty-handed.
"We're heading to Putin's lair, in many ways it's a throw of the dice," one source close to Macron told Reuters.
Macron told the Journal du Dimanche newspaper that Russia's objective was "not Ukraine, but a clarification of the rules... with Nato and the EU".
He said he hoped his dialogue with the Russian president would be enough to prevent military conflict, and that he believed Putin would be open to discussing wider issues.
Macron, who also spoke with US President Joe Biden on Sunday, cautioned against expecting Moscow to take unilateral measures to de-escalate the situation and said Russia had the right to raise its own concerns.
But he said setting up dialogue with Russia could not "pass through the weakening of any European state".
"We must protect our European brothers by proposing a new balance capable of preserving their sovereignty and peace," he said.
"This must be done while respecting Russia and understanding the contemporary traumas of this great people and great nation."
Russia has massed some 100,000 troops near Ukraine and demanded NATO and US security guarantees, including that NATO never admit Ukraine as a member.
Russian tanks move towards the border with Ukraine for training exercises last month. Photo: AFP / Russian Defence Ministry
Buying time before series of elections
Two sources close to Macron said one aim of his visit was to buy time and freeze the situation for several months, at least until a "Super April" of elections in Europe - in Hungary, Slovenia and, crucially for Macron, in France.
The French leader, who has earned a reputation for highly publicised diplomatic forays since he took power in 2017, has both tried to cajole and confront Putin over the past five years. His efforts have brought close dialogue with the Russian leader as well as painful setbacks.
Soon after his election, Macron rolled out the red carpet for Putin at the Palace of Versailles, but also used the visit to publicly decry Russian meddling during the election. Two years later, the pair met at the French president's summer residence.
But Macron's many overtures did not prevent Russian encroachment into traditional French spheres of influence in Africa, culminating late last year with the arrival of Russian mercenaries in Mali. French officials believe they are supported by the Kremlin.
Eastern European countries who suffered decades under Soviet rule have criticised Macron's cooperative stance on Russia, leery of Macron's talk of negotiating a "new European security order" with Russia.
To counter critics ahead of the trip and take on the mantle of European leadership in this crisis, Macron has been at pains to consult with other Western leaders this time, including Britain's Boris Johnson and Biden.
The French president's visit to Moscow and Ukraine comes less than three months before a presidential election at home. His political advisers see a potential electoral dividend, although Macron has yet to announce whether he will run.
"For the president, it's an opportunity to show his leadership in Europe. That he is above the fray," one French government source said.
-Reuters / BBC