The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, on Saturday met Melitopol mayor Ivan Fedorov along with a delegation of the Ukrainian Parliament, Verkhovna Rada. This came days after Russian troops released mayor Fedorov after being abducted for around five days.
While the President warmly greeted mayor Fedorov, he also took a detailed account of the survival story of the mayor and was overwhelmed after hearing his story.
Hearing the story, the French President showed his full support to Ukraine and further said, “It is hard to imagine what the mayor of Melitopol, abducted by the army, survived. Now he is free, and we heard his story. It is stunning. I expressed our admiration and support to the MPs and the MPs who came with him. Side by side with, decisively, and to the end.”
Meanwhile, the meeting between the President of France and the delegation of the Ukrainian Parliament took place at the Elysee Palace in Paris and held several discussions on many major issues.
On one side, while the Melitopol mayor shared his story of captivity, the delegation and the representative discussed the main issues surrounding sanctions and the need to strengthen them.
As stated by the Ukrainian parliament, the delegation noted that the activities of the International Committee of the Red Cross, followed by the contributions of millions of people, including France, will come at the risk of being redistributed in Russia.
After this, the delegation also sought a shutdown of propaganda broadcasts in Russia, saying that more than 11 channels continue to rule the country. They also mentioned the sudden disappearances and abduction of Ukrainian leaders.
While France has recalled that all its sanctions will not be lifted from Russia until the last Russian troop leaves Ukraine, it has also joined the group of countries ready to provide security guarantees. Further, it will provide an additional € 300 million to Ukraine.
