Macron avers US needs to sit down at negotiating table to advance peace process in Ukraine

Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the US needs to sit down at the negotiating table to push for peace in Ukraine. Macron was speaking at the Vatican. He had travelled to the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis. According to reports from Sputnik, Macron urged the Pope to reach out to US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Macron, noticing that Joe Biden is Catholic, suggested that the Pope might be able to influence him in a manner that leads to the US deciding to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. 

"We need the United States to sit down at the negotiating table to advance the peace process in Ukraine," said the French President. He also urged the Pope to reach out to Russian Orthodox Church patriarch Kirill and Russian President Putin to "help bring peace in Ukraine". "During the cordial discussions, which took place in the Secretariat of State, the parties focused on matters of an international nature, starting with the conflict in Ukraine, with special attention to the humanitarian situation," said a statement released by the Vatican. Earlier, Pope Francis had said that supplying munitions and armaments to Ukraine might be morally acceptable as Ukraine was 'defending itself'. 

Macron complains about US selling expensive gas to Europe

Although, the Pope has not been completely uncritical of NATO. Francis had suggested that NATO provoked Russia by expanding NATO eastwards despite promises to Russia that NATO won't be expanded towards the east. On Friday last week, Macron was criticising the US for selling gas to Europe at a price higher than the cost of gas in the US. "Their costs of energy are so much lower as they are producers. They sell their gas for 3-4 times less than we have to pay, and they also have great subsidies from the state in some areas, up to 90 percent. That is unfair. These are double standards," the French president complained. However, that has not stopped Macron from providing armaments to Ukraine, which has led to Ukraine having maximallist aims such as taking Crimea from Russia. In September, Putin had warned that the US' goal is selling expensive LNG to Europe.