French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu had a telephone conversation with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. This was reported by Le Monde with reference to a press release from the French Ministry of Defense.

This conversation between the heads of the departments was the first since October 2022.

Lecornu reportedly condemned the terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall concert hall near Moscow. The head of the French Defense Ministry also emphasized that Paris has no information about the terrorists' connection with Ukraine. The minister called on Russia to stop trying to shift the responsibility onto Kyiv.

Lecornu also condemned the war in Ukraine and reminded that France will "continue to support Ukraine as long and as strongly as necessary in its struggle for freedom, to bring peace and security to the European continent."

The Russian Defense Ministry published its version of the ministers' conversation. It claims that Lecornu emphasized his readiness for dialogue on Ukraine based on the Istanbul peace initiative.

The report also says that Shoigu warned Lecornu that "if the plans to send a French contingent to Ukraine are put into practice, it will create problems for France itself."

Shoigu also said that "holding a meeting in Geneva on Ukraine without Russia's participation is pointless."

At the same time, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the talks between Shoigu and the French Minister of the Armed Forces took place at the "insistent request of the French side."

It is reported that Lecornu "persistently tried to convince" that Kyiv and the West were not involved in the attack on Crocus. At the same time, Shoigu said that Russia "has information about the Ukrainian trace in the organization of the terrorist attack" and stated that the investigation "will be brought to an end."