French President Emmanuel Macron (L) and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky at talks on February 8, 2022, in Kiev. Photo: VNA

Macron said his meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday made progress toward stabilizing the region, although that might take several months.

According to Macron, both Zelensky and Putin pledged to respect the Minsk agreements in settling current disputes. He added that President Putin told him Russia will not be the source of an escalation.

Macron insisted after meeting German chancellor Olaf Scholz and Polish president Andrzej Duda in Berlin the same day that Putin and Zelensky are committed to re-engaging in “Normandy format” talks involving Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany to keep negotiations moving forward.

Chancellor Scholz said all parties are united by the goal of maintaining peace in Europe through diplomacy and clear messages and the shared will to act in unison. President Duba said he believes that a war can still be averted and this is currently their main task. He added what's most important now is unity and solidarity.

“Europe has to find the ways and means to have this challenging and important dialogue with Russia in different formats,” Macron said. In the coming days and weeks, he said, they will have talks in the Normandy format, because that is the political framework for resolving the Ukraine crisis.

Another session of Normandy talks will be held in Berlin on Thursday. Chancellor Scholz will visit Kiev and Moscow next Monday and Tuesday to continue the discussion of how to resolve the crisis in Ukraine.