Overview
- France sent top adviser Emmanuel Bonne to Moscow last week, the first such visit since 2022, to reestablish technical lines of communication.
- Macron wants any outreach to proceed with few interlocutors under a clear mandate to keep the format disciplined.
- He insists Europe should not delegate discussions to the United States, which has renewed contacts with Russia under President Donald Trump.
- The Kremlin welcomes the prospect of renewed ties, with Dmitri Peskov confirming recent contacts and Sergei Lavrov saying Vladimir Putin would take Macron's call.
- Macron cautions that any eventual Russia‑Ukraine settlement would require building a new European security architecture with Russia.