Macron vows Ukraine support against Russian ‘escalation’

France’s President Emmanuel Macron vowed Friday to give Ukraine intense support in its battle against Russia’s “escalation” of its invasion, his office said.

Macron condemned Russia’s “indiscriminate” strikes against Ukraine’s cities and power infrastructure in a telephone call with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Elysee Palace said.

“These strikes, the growing cooperation with North Korea and the irresponsible rhetoric that accompanies them are of an unacceptable logic of escalation by Russia, which continues to pursue a revisionist, brutal and imperialist design in violation of the sovereign rights of Ukraine and the UN Charter,” Macron added.

The French leader told Zelenskyy Russia’s tactics would not lessen “our determination to continue aiding Ukraine as intensely and as long as necessary, so that it can exercise its right to legitimate defence and Russia’s war of aggression fails.”

Russia has used a new hypersonic missile against Ukraine and threatened a repeat in response to Ukraine’s use of US and British missiles inside Russian-held territory.

It has since stepped up attacks with drones and other missiles.

France has said that Ukraine’s use of French missiles remains “an option”.