Johnson warns Macron not to attempt Ukraine settlement now

EuroActiv Politico News

LONDON —  Attempting to settle the conflict in Ukraine now would only cause “enduring instability,” Boris Johnson warned Emmanuel Macron on Sunday.

Speaking at the G7 summit of world leaders in Germany, the U.K. prime minister told the French president that such a move would “give Putin license to manipulate both sovereign countries and international markets in perpetuity,” according to a Downing Street readout of the pair’s encounter.

In the lead-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Macron was one of the few Western leaders who maintained dialogue with Vladimir Putin, and has regularly spoken to the Russian president since the conflict begun.

Macron has also warned that Russia should not be “humiliated” over Putin’s “historic and fundamental mistake.”

A Downing Street spokesperson said Johnson and Macron had agreed now is a “critical moment for the course of the conflict” and that there is an “opportunity to turn the tide in the war.”

But the Johnson’s office added: “The prime minister stressed any attempt to settle the conflict now will only cause enduring instability and give Putin licence to manipulate both sovereign countries and international markets in perpetuity.”

The U.K. leader’s comments come after he warned G7 and NATO allies not to encourage Ukraine to settle for “a bad peace” as Russia’s war drags on.