Macron and Scholz Hold Second Phone Call with Putin in Two Days... Continued Calls for Ceasefire

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] It has been reported that French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held another phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin just two days after their previous conversation. This contact is interpreted as an effort to urge a ceasefire amid intensified offensives by Russia on major Ukrainian cities such as Kyiv.

According to AFP on the 12th (local time), the French presidential office announced that President Macron and Chancellor Scholz were on a phone call with President Putin. The Kremlin also confirmed the call among the three leaders, Sputnik News reported.

The French presidential office added that since President Macron’s meeting with President Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on the 7th, the two leaders have spoken nine times.

Previously, on the 10th, President Macron and Chancellor Scholz spoke with President Putin, urging an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. However, despite calls for a ceasefire and Western sanctions, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues.

On the 17th day since the outbreak of the war, concerns from the international community are growing as Russian forces indiscriminately attack civilian facilities in Ukraine. On this day, Russian troops shelled an Islamic mosque in Mariupol, where about 80 people had taken refuge, drawing international condemnation.

Russia consistently denies attacks on civilian facilities, but as evidence of civilian bombings continues to emerge, the West is warning that it will hold Russia accountable.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.