Awkward! Macron greets Zelensky with clumsy hug
THE leaders of France, Germany and Italy travelled to Kyiv yesterday for crunch talks with Volodymyr Zelensky.
After months of criticism over their perceived soft stance towards Russia, Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz and Mario Draghi met the Ukrainian president to show their support for the wartorn country.
But Russia dismissed the visit, claiming it would not ‘bring Ukraine any closer to peace’. Ex-president Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, mocked the leaders as ‘European fans of frogs, liverwurst and spaghetti’.
Mr Macron, Mr Scholz and Mr Draghi arrived on a night train yesterday and toured the heavily shelled town of Irpin on the outskirts of Kyiv. President Klaus Iohannis of neighbouring Romania – which has been a key destination for Ukrainian refugees – arrived on a separate train to join them.
German chancellor Mr Scholz said the ruined buildings and wrecked cars were a scene of ‘unimaginable cruelty’. Mr Macron, who greeted Mr Zelensky with an awkward hug, added that it was a ‘heroic city… marked by the stigma of barbarism’.
The French president – who has spoken to Vladimir Putin 11 times since the invasion – sparked controversy last week after telling Ukraine not to ‘humiliate’ Russia and end the war ‘through diplomatic means’.
In a Press conference alongside the four leaders yesterday, he batted away the criticism saying that France had supported Ukraine ‘since the first day’.
Mr Macron added: ‘Europe is by your side, and will remain so for as long as necessary, all the way to victory.’