France wants Crimea to return to Ukraine, says French diplomatic source

THE France wants to see Ukraine regain control of Crimea as part of a military victory against Russia, according to a French diplomatic source.

The statements were made during the visit of the leaders of France, Germany and Italy to Kiev . The source was talking to journalists traveling with the French delegation on Thursday (16).

“We are for an integral victory with the restoration of territorial integrity in all territories conquered by the Russians, including Crimea,” said the French official, referring to the Black Sea peninsula that the Russia attached to the force of Ukraine in 2014.

Once the war is over, talks will be needed to determine the type of security guarantees for Ukraine and the relationship between the country and the nato said the diplomatic source, to “know how we will build a lasting peace”.

“What is at stake is the security of all of us,” he said, adding that a “Ukrainian military victory must be defined by Zelensky.”

the french president Emmanuel Macron German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi arrived in Kiev on Thursday.

The three leaders traveled by train to Kiev, where they are due to meet with the Ukrainian president. Volodymyr Zelensky and express “a message of European unity”.

Speaking to reporters on the platform as he arrived at the Ukrainian capital’s train station, Macron said the leaders would also visit the site of an alleged massacre.

Asked if he had a message for Ukrainians, Macron said he had a “message of European unity addressed to Ukrainian men and women”.

“The next few weeks, we know, are going to be very difficult,” he said. “I want to support them and be by their side.”