The Normandy format is needed regardless of the talks between Biden and Putin - Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron believes that it is necessary to preserve the Normandy format as a negotiating format, regardless of the negotiations of the US and Russian leaders on issues related to Ukraine.

The "European Pravda" writes about it.

"Such initiatives are not a substitute for the existing format," Emmanuel Macron said at his big press conference on December 9.

He praised Biden for holding discussions with European allies before and after his conversation with Putin.

"Our desire is to engage in contact with Zelensky, whom I will see on Wednesday, and in contact with Putin, with whom I will speak next week, to revive this format," the French president added.

Note that Zelenski reported that his meeting with Macron and the new German chancellor could take place in Brussels next week.

December 9, the same position was expressed by the French Foreign Minister at a joint press conference with the new German Foreign Ministry. They stressed that they hoped to hold the next "Normandy" meeting at the level of foreign ministers as soon as possible.

As a reminder, Russia in November rejected the dates proposed by France and Germany for a ministerial meeting in the Normandy format. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov explained this by the scheduling and the fact that Russia had not received a response to its proposals on the final document of such a potential meeting, which were transmitted on October 29. According to him, it was a three-page document.

The Russian Foreign Ministry later published confidential diplomatic correspondence between Russian Minister Sergei Lavrov and French and German Foreign Ministers Jean-Yves Le Drian and Heiko Maas. This step was explained by the fact that the Russian side's position and its approach to the Normandy format meeting were allegedly regularly distorted.