Russia is wrong to think Iran war will offer respite on Ukraine, Macron says

Russia is wrong to think the war in Iran will give it respite in Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday at a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky. The leaders were meeting for talks on ways to increase pressure on Russia, including increasing sanctions pressure on Moscow by targeting its "shadow fleet" of tankers.

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French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday said Russia was "mistaken" if it thought the Middle East war would ease pressure on it, after Washington partially rolled back sanctions against Moscow to cool oil prices.

"Today Russia may believe that the war in Iran will offer it respite. It is mistaken," he said during a news conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.

During a meeting of the Group of Seven countries earlier this week, "we reaffirmed rising oil prices must under no circumstances lead us to reconsider our sanctions policy towards Russia," he added.

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The talks in Paris between Macron and Zelensky are set to focus on increasing sanctions pressure on Russia by targeting its "shadow fleet" of tankers used to transport oil in breach of sanctions imposed over the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the French presidency said.

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US easing of Russia oil sanctions 'temporary and limited'

The United States' waivers on sanctions against some Russian oil products to tame a price surge in oil are temporary and limited, Macron said, adding that the G7 position remains that the conflict in the Middle East does not justify lifting sanctions on Russian oil.

"It is entirely true that the United States has granted limited exemptions," Macron said at the news conference.

"As for the G7, the common position has indeed been to maintain sanctions against Russia, and for the Europeans and France, it is also to maintain them. The current situation in no way justifies lifting these sanctions," he added.

The United States issued a 30-day waiver for countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products stranded at sea, drawing criticism from Germany and other European allies on Friday but approval from Moscow.

Zelensky and Macron are also expected to discuss diplomatic efforts to halt the war in Ukraine, Macron's office said.

The Kremlin said the planned meeting would obstruct the peace process and that the "very idea of trying to put pressure on Russia is absurd".

US President Donald Trump said Monday that he would waive "certain oil-related sanctions". He did not explicitly mention Russia though the comment followed a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The United States has proposed new trilateral peace talks with Russia and Ukraine next week. The talks could be held in Switzerland or Turkey, according to Zelensky.

The Ukrainian president arrived in Romania on Thursday ahead of the Paris meeting, and is also expected to visit Spain on his European tour.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and Reuters)