Macron hopes for an “Olympic truce” in Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron in an interview with the French channel BFM, timed to the 100 days remaining before the opening of the Olympic Games in Paris, said that he still hopes for the establishment of the so-called Olympic truce during the days of the games, from July 26 to August 11.

According to Macron, during the games, a truce should be declared in the war in Ukraine, as well as in other large-scale conflicts, in particular in the Gaza Strip and Sudan. According to Macron, he seeks to “attract many partners” to achieve this goal, among them he mentioned the President of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping.

Macron also promised to ensure the security of the Games in the face of the terrorist threat. “If there is a place where your son will be safe, it will be at the Olympics,” said Emmanuel Macron, answering one of the questions. After the terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall near Moscow, Macron noted that the recognized terrorist group “Vilayat Khorasan” (Afghan branch of “IS”) was also preparing terrorist attacks in France.

Macron supported the decision of the International Olympic Committee on the issue of Russian and Belarusian athletes. Due to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, they can participate in the Games only as a neutral. Macron called the IOC’s decision “proportionate and fair”, and urged to respect the athletes from Russia and Belarus, who will still come to the Games. “Russia is not invited, its leader cannot be invited, but athletes without an anthem, without flags will participate in the competitions,” the president noted. A number of Russian officials and public figures criticized the athletes who agreed to participate in the Games in a neutral status, but the Russian authorities did not formally announce a boycott of the Games.

Macron also disagreed with the fact that the same sanctions should be applied to Israeli athletes in connection with the war in the Gaza Strip as against the Russians, noting that one may disagree with Israel’s methods of conducting hostilities, but Israel does not act in the role of the aggressor, and responds to the attack.