The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has spoken to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, on the phone. According to the Élysée Palace, this was their first direct exchange since September 2022, during which they discussed Iran and Ukraine. The call lasted two hours, during which President Macron called for a ceasefire in Ukraine and the start of negotiations to end the conflict. President Putin blamed the West for the war. According to a statement from the Kremlin, the Russian president told