France says the time is right to bring Russia in from cold

FRANCE says the time has come to start bringing Russia in from the cold, as ministers held talks in Moscow yesterday for the first time since the Russian annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Jean-yves Le Drian, the French foreign minister, said a prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine at the weekend had created a “window of opportunity” to ease tensions.

“The time is right to work towards reducing the distrust between Russia and Europe, who ought to be partners on a strategic and economic level,” said Mr Le Drian.

Relatives of victims of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17, shot down over Ukraine in 2014, criticised the country for handing over the suspects.

Mr Le Drian stressed that it was still too early to lift sanctions imposed on Russia in 2014 over Crimea and its support for armed pro-russian separatists in Ukraine, as he and Florence Parly, the French defence minister, held talks with their Russian counterparts.

Emmanuel Macron, the French president, wants to take the lead on bringing Russia back into conversation with the West despite tension over Moscow’s support for the Assad regime in Syria and its policies on Iran and Libya.

France is also concerned about Russia’s role in the Central African Republic, a mineral-rich former French colony torn by sectarian violence. Russia is training government troops there, but France fears it may exploit resources and create further instability.

Mr Macron’s critics accuse him of burying allegations that Russia attempted to meddle in France’s 2017 election and showing weakness as Mr Putin cracks down on dissent at home.