Olympic diplomacy falters, Russia turns down Macron's Ukraine cease-fire appeal
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova seemed to rebuff the plea, advising Macron to cease sending weapons and ammunition to Kyiv, thus contributing to the conflict's prolongation
Russia has dismissed calls by French President Emmanuel Macron to observe a ceasefire during the Summer Olympics to be hosted by Paris in July.
French President Macron conveyed his plea for a ceasefire in Ukraine during the upcoming Paris Olympics in an interview with Ukrainian television.
"This is a message of peace," Macron stated.
The Paris Olympics are scheduled to take place from July 26 to Aug. 11, with 10,500 athletes from 206 countries competing throughout two and a half weeks.
Macron assured that France would respect the decision of the Olympic Committee to allow Russian athletes to compete under a neutral flag.
"Of course, we will closely monitor their performances, so that no one takes advantage of the athletes in this situation," he added.
'Stop sending weapons to Kyiv'
However, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova appeared to reject Macron's request.
Zakharova urged him to cease sending weapons and ammunition to Kyiv, thus contributing to the prolongation of the conflict that entered its third-year last month.
"I come forward with a proposal in response to Macron's: Stop supplying weapons being used to kill and also stop sponsoring terrorism," Zakharova said.
The Kremlin pointed out that Macron had not similarly called for action regarding the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Gaza in the Middle East.
"I also suggest that Macron come up with a similar proposal to the parties in the Middle East conflict. A lot probably depends on what France says there," Zakharova added.
Russian athletes cannot compete under the Russian flag
Russian athletes competing in certain disciplines have been permitted to participate in this year's Olympic Games as neutrals, much to the dismay of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee, which called for an outright ban on all Russian nationals.
Although Russian and Belarusian nationals are prohibited from competing in athletic competitions by the respective governing body, individual competitors can participate in other sports such as swimming provided they have no direct links to advocates of the war.
As Russian athletes cannot compete under the Russian flag, there will be no Russian representation in any team sports at the tournament.
Source: Newsroom
