Macron, Trump discuss halt to attacks on Russian, Ukrainian energy facilities — Pajhwok

KABUL (Pajhwok): French President Emmanuel Macron and his US counterpart Donald Trump have discussed initiatives aimed at achieving a halt to attacks on energy facilities in Russia and Ukraine, a media report said on Tuesday. Macron met Trump on Monday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Reuters reported. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Macron said the two leaders had held a “very good” and “very constructive” discussion on the conflict and agreed on the need to help Kyiv strengthen its defences. “We had a lengthy discussion on Ukraine and Russia, the need to help our Ukrainian friends more quickly and more strongly in terms of interceptors, because that is the key issue from a defensive point of view,” Macron said. Without going into details, Macron said the two had also focused on the idea of halting strikes on the energy sector, a subject he would bring up when he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy later on Monday. The French leader said helping Ukraine’s energy system remained a priority as the war continued to affect security across Europe, and he hoped progress could be made during the annual gathering of leaders at the United Nations.