Russia Confirmed on Friday that the president of France, Emmanuel MacronKeep your distance with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putinin a your meeting About the crisis in Ukraine because The French president refused to take a Covid test in the Kremlin.

Why Putin and Macron sat at a long table?

Pictures were posted on Monday Macron and Putin sit at the edge of a six-meter white table They sparked a torrent of comments and many noted the coolness the photos showed.

on the Internet, The spread image of the meeting produced a series of ridicule and comparisons with the distance maintained with other meetings with foreign dignitariesLike the Argentine president Alberto Fernandez The President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

They said from the Kremlin that the French president does not want to be tested

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that the decision to use this furniture It was because the French leader refused to take a PCR test in the Russian presidency.

“Talks with some are taking place at a long table and the distance (from the table) is about six meters,” the spokesman said in response to a reporter’s question.

“This is because some follow their own rules, and do not cooperate with the host,” The official noted that in these cases an additional health protocol is imposed to protect the Russian president and his guests..

The spokesperson denied a political background

“This is not a policy and does not interfere in any way in the negotiations,” Peskov said.

The French presidency has justified that the protocol conditions for a meeting between the two heads of state at a smaller distance, with a connection that includes a handshake and a smaller table, do not seem acceptable or compatible with the limitations of the agenda.

“We chose the other option proposed by the Russian protocol,” said the delegation accompanying the president, who arrived in Moscow to meet Putin in the middle of Monday afternoon.

Since January, Putin has received Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, and Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, countries allied with Russia, at the big white table.

Instead, the Argentine president and the Kazakh president sat close to Putin.

Macron has traveled to Russia in an attempt to calm tensions between Moscow and Ukraine, after a massive movement of Russian troops on the border.

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© AFP