Zelenskyy invites Macron to witness proof of 'genocide', after he denies to use the term

Amidst the ongoing war and ruthless military aggression by the Russian troops in Ukraine, the President of the war-torn nation, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron to visit Ukraine to witness proof that Russian forces have perpetrated "genocide," a word that Macron has been avoiding to use. During an interview which has been recorded on Friday and was broadcast on Sunday, Zelenskyy told CNN, “I talked to him yesterday. I just told him I want him to understand that this is not war, but nothing other than genocide. I invited him to come when he will have the opportunity. He will come and see, and I am sure he will understand".  

These remarks of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy came after Macron on Wednesday declined to call the Kremlin's actions "genocide." In a television interview with France 2, the French President indicated that, unlike United States President Joe Biden, he did not wish to use the term "genocide" to describe the Russian military's killing of Ukrainian citizens. Macron stated that he did not want to use the word "genocide" since Russians and Ukrainians are brothers. During the interview, indicating Russian and Ukrainian people, Macron said, "I would be cautious with such words because these two peoples are brothers." 

We are living through war crimes: Macron

The French President went on to say that he did not want to engage in wordplay and that he preferred to end the conflict as soon as possible. According to media reports, Macron told France 2, “What we can say for sure is that the situation is unacceptable and that these are war crimes. We are living through war crimes that are unprecedented on our soil — our European soil".  

Macron made these statements just a few hours after US President Joe Biden declared Russia's conflict in Ukraine to be "genocide," accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of attempting to "wipe out" the notion of even being a Ukrainian. "Yes, I called it genocide," Biden said to the media in Iowa on Tuesday before boarding Air Force One for a flight back to Washington. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine's beleaguered President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised POTUS Biden's statements on Twitter. He tweeted, "True words of a true leader @POTUS." 

In addition to this, on Thursday, Zelenksyy and Macron had addressed the "Russian crimes" probe. Zelenskyy took to Twitter to say that he and Macron discussed Ukraine's resistance to Russia and that he appreciated France's solid support.  The presidents of France and Ukraine also discussed the ongoing negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow. 

(Image: AP)