The two presidents exchanged opinions on current issues of Russian-French relations, including preparations for Mr Macron’s visit to Russia and his participation in the St Petersburg International Economic Forum in May this year.
When speaking about trade, economic and investment cooperation, Vladimir Putin updated his French colleague on the results of his recent meeting with French business leaders.
The presidents praised the Trianon Dialogue civil society forum, which is gaining momentum and now includes a digital platform.
Mr Putin and Mr Macron had an in-depth discussion of the prospects for a political settlement in Syria and pointed out their interest in promoting inclusive intra-Syrian talks in Geneva based on UN Security Council Resolution 2254 with due account for the results of the Syrian National Dialogue Congress, which was held in Sochi on January 30. They also discussed possible assistance to Syria’s post-conflict rehabilitation. Overall, the two presidents agreed on the importance of strengthening Russian-French coordination on the key aspect of a settlement in Syria.
They also discussed the situation in Ukraine and highlighted the importance of full implementation of the Minsk Package as the basis for a peaceful settlement of the internal Ukrainian conflict.
Mr Putin and Mr Macron have agreed to maintain contacts between various national agencies.