French calls for talks with Putin a 'mistake,' says senior Polish diplomat

By Jo Harper

WARSAW (AA) - A call by France for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin is a "mistake," a senior Polish official said on Tuesday.

"Today, we firmly say that Macron is making a mistake by saying what he says," Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Przydacz told Polish RMF FM radio when asked about the recent statements by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Macron said on Saturday that the West should consider how to respond to Russia's stated need for security guarantees if Putin agrees to negotiations to end the war with Ukraine. In an interview with CBS News, Macron said a policy of isolation was the worst solution, especially against a leader like Putin.

"From whom would Russia receive a guarantee of security, according to the French president? If anyone needs security guarantees, Ukraine needs them and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe need them against the Russian threat," said Przydacz.

"We believe that it is through a policy of isolation that the desired goals can be achieved. And we are critical of all these phone calls and attempts at talks, because it only strengthens Putin, who believes that, 'If they call me, it means that they are weakening," Przydacz said.

"Vladimir Putin has a mental structure that makes any attempts to contact him, to appease him, strengthen him internally. He thinks that's how the West shows weakness. So, the more there are of these calls, the stronger Putin feels internally," he added.

"This (Macron's) is a statement that will be difficult for anyone to understand in this region."

Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council, also weighed in on the French president's statement, saying that the best guarantee for Europe and the world would be "a Russia that is demilitarized and devoid of nuclear weapons."