During a joint press conference in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron urged major global powers, including Brazil, India, and China, to leverage their influence to pressure Russia to end the war in Ukraine.
The conference took place as part of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s state visit to France. Macron emphasized that the international community requires broader engagement from major powers, beyond Europe and the United States, to halt the conflict in Ukraine.
On the other hand, President Lula appealed to Macron to give France’s green light for the finalization of the trade agreement between the European Union and the South American economic bloc, Mercosur.
“Open your heart a little to this opportunity to finalize this agreement with our beloved Mercosur,” Lula pleaded. “This agreement would be the strongest response our regions could give in the face of the insecurity brought by the return of unilateralism and tariff protectionism,” Lula added, alluding to the economic policies of President Donald Trump.
