Emmanuel Bonne, who has led President Macron's diplomatic unit since 2019, visited Moscow on Feb. 4 to hold talks at the Kremlin, sources say. The French presidency described the meetings as technical and said they were conducted in consultation with President Zelenskiy and European partners. Sources report Bonne met Yuri Ushakov, a senior aide to Vladimir Putin, as Paris pushes for Europeans to restore direct channels with Moscow if U.S.-led peace efforts falter.
Macron's Top Diplomat Visits Moscow to Hold Ukraine Talks, Sources Say
FILE PHOTO: France's President Emmanuel Macron speaks flanked by his diplomatic advisor Emmanuel Bonne during a diplomatic meeting with Ukrainian Head of Presidential Office Andriy Yermak, UK National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Germany national security advisor Jens Ploetner at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris, France April 17, 2025. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
PARIS, Feb. 4 (Reuters) — Emmanuel Bonne, President Emmanuel Macron's most senior diplomatic adviser, travelled to Moscow on Feb. 4 to meet with Russian officials, sources familiar with the visit and two diplomatic sources said.
One source identified Bonne — who has led Macron's diplomatic unit since 2019 — and said he held talks at the Kremlin. The source declined to provide further detail, saying the primary purpose was to maintain dialogue on key issues, with Ukraine the top priority.
The French presidency neither confirmed nor denied the trip, but said: "As the President said during his doorstep yesterday, discussions exist at a technical level in full transparency and in consultation with President Zelenskiy and with the main European colleagues."
Two diplomatic sources said allies had been informed of the initiative and that Bonne held talks with Yuri Ushakov, a senior aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Officials described the contacts as technical and conducted in coordination with Ukrainian and European partners.
Macron has argued that Europeans may need to re-engage directly with President Putin if the latest U.S.-led efforts to broker a peace deal for Ukraine fail. He told reporters on Tuesday that work was under way to restart dialogue with the Kremlin.
"It's being prepared and so there are discussions that are being held at a technical level," Macron said, adding that those discussions were being conducted in consultation with Ukraine. "It's important that the Europeans restore their own channels of discussion."
European leaders, wary of Russia's military ambitions, have expressed frustration at being sidelined from peace talks led by the U.S. administration and have instead focused on strengthening Ukraine's negotiating position from the sidelines.
(Reporting by John Irish, Elizabeth Pineau and Michel Rose; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Rod Nickel)
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