Ukraine war: Macron slams Morawiecki for 'unfounded, scandalous' criticism of Putin dialogue
Emmanuel Macron has described as "unfounded" and "scandalous" criticism by Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki of the French President's numerous phone conversations with Vladimir Putin.
On Monday, Morawiecki ridiculed the French leader’s several hours of phone calls with the Russian leader, saying that they achieved nothing.
"President Macron, how many times have you negotiated with Putin? What have you achieved?" the Polish premier said earlier this week. “Would you negotiate with Hitler, with Stalin, with Pol Pot?”
"These remarks are both unfounded and scandalous, but they do not surprise me," the French president said on Wednesday.
Macron told TF1 broadcaster’s evening news that he takes full responsibility for speaking to Putin "in the name of France to avoid the war and to build a new architecture for peace in Europe several years ago".
According to the Elysée Palace, the French president has spoken to Putin at least 16 times since the start of the year. In February, before the war started, Macron visited Moscow to meet his Russian counterpart in a failed attempt to dissuade Putin from invading Ukraine.
Macron, who is standing for re-election in France in polls that begin on Sunday, said Morawiecki was backed by "a far-right party" and accused him of interference in the French political campaign.
The Polish leader, he said, had received his rival Marine Le Pen "several times" and "supports" the French far-right candidate in the election.
There've been concerns that the comments by Morawiecki, who also accused certain European leaders of "procrastination" and "wooden language", might destabilise EU unity as Europe tries to stand up to Putin’s aggression in Ukraine.
Latest opinion polls suggest the gap has closed between
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