Macron Strongly Condemns Putin's Signs of Refusing Olympic Truce

French President Emmanuel Macron raised his voice in criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hinted at rejecting a truce during the upcoming Paris Olympics.

In an interview with CNBC on the 23rd (local time), President Macron pointed out that the refusal of an Olympic truce "shows that (President Putin) is not ready to achieve peace." He added, "Until now, President Putin has habitually said that peace is possible," urging him to "clearly prove his words at this critical moment" by aligning his actions with his statements.

[Image source= Xinhua News Agency]

President Macron has so far given significance to the Olympic truce as an opportunity to build relations with China while laying the groundwork for a long-term ceasefire. In the interview, he emphasized, "The ultimate goal is not the Olympic truce itself but to build sustainable peace," adding, "It is very important to seize this opportunity."

Earlier, President Macron, together with Chinese President Xi Jinping, jointly proposed a truce to Russia and Ukraine during the Paris Olympics, which open in July. However, President Putin only mentioned discussing the Olympic truce with President Xi during his visit to China last week but did not comment on whether the truce would be implemented, instead criticizing the restrictions on Russian athletes' participation in the Olympics. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating as national representatives in the Paris Olympics, allowing only individual participation.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also expressed a negative stance on the Olympic truce proposal during a briefing on the 16th, stating, "Russia notes that Ukraine uses this as an opportunity to regroup and rearm." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also rejected the Olympic truce proposal in an interview with AFP last week, calling it "advantageous only to Russia." There is skepticism that even if the Olympic truce is achieved, President Putin will withdraw troops as promised.

The historic Olympic truce was newly proposed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1992 and was fully implemented starting with the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics. However, there have been three violations, all related to Russia. Russia invaded Georgia on the opening day of the 2008 Beijing Olympics and forcibly occupied Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula immediately after the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. The invasion of Ukraine was also launched abruptly right after the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics concluded.