French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at a working dinner at the Elysée Palace, AFP reported.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Paris on his first visit to an EU member state since the Russian invasion almost a year ago.
Zelensky landed at Paris Orly Airport on board a British government plane from London.
The visit of the Ukrainian head of state to Paris comes hours after he addressed a joint session of the British Parliament in London, in which thank the British people for his support from “day one” of the Russian invasion.
At a joint press conference in the Elysee Palace after his meeting with Vladimir Zelensky and Olaf Scholzov, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that his country intends to lead Ukraine to victory in the war with Russia.
“We support Ukraine and we intend to lead it to victory,” Macron said. – “Ukraine can count on France and its allies for this, and Russia must not and will not win this war.
The French president also assured Zelensky that Paris will continue to provide military aid to Ukraine and will adapt to the needs of Kyiv.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who arrived in Paris specifically for a meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky, also confirmed that his country would provide military aid to Ukraine “as long as necessary” and, like his French counterpart, stressed that it should not to allow Russia to win this war.
For his part, Vladimir Zelensky thanked Macron and Scholz for the “spontaneous idea to hold this meeting”.
“France and Germany have the potential to fundamentally change the situation,” he said. – The sooner Ukraine acquires long-range weapons and modern aircraft, the better stronger will be our coalition.”
The president of Ukraine will travel to Brussels on Thursday for the EU summit.
We have freedom, give us wings to protect it! Zelensky before the British Parliament
Russia will lose, assured the Ukrainian president
French President Emmanuel Macron has “changed” after his comments that he should not humiliate Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with the French newspaper “Figaro” before his visit to Paris.
Macron caused controversy in June last yearwhen he said it was vital that the West not “humiliate Russia so that when the fighting stops, we can find a way out through diplomatic means.”
“I think he has changed, and this time he has really changed,” Zelensky told Figaro. “After all, it was he who paved the way for the delivery of tanks. And he also supported Ukraine’s membership in the EU. I think that was a real signal,” Zelensky said.
Restored
Zelensky on a surprise visit to Great Britain
This is the first visit of the Ukrainian leader to the island since the beginning of the war
The interview was published just as Zelensky was due to arrive in Paris for his first visit to France since the beginning of the invasion almost a year ago.
Zelensky has sometimes shown impatience with Macron, who even after the invasion held frequent phone calls with President Vladimir Putin.
Responding to Macron’s comments at the time, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said that “calls to avoid humiliating Russia, they can only humiliate France“.
