UN calls for end to provocative rhetoric — spokesman Response to Macron's statement

The UN calls on all sides to refrain from rhetoric that could further escalate the conflict in Ukraine, UN Secretary-General's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

"Since the start of this conflict, we have seen a lot of rhetoric that has the potential of inflaming what is already a deadly conflict," he said in response to a TASS request to assess the words of French President Emmanuel Macron, who did not rule out the possibility of sending Western troops to help Kyiv. "Our protocol has been very consistent since the beginning [of the Ukrainian crisis], [and that is] to avoid such rhetoric," he pointed out.

Dujarric added that the UN "continues to hope to see an end to the conflict in Ukraine in line with international law, [UN] General Assembly resolutions."

Earlier, after a conference on Ukraine in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said that he did not rule out that land forces from Western countries could be sent to the zone of special military operation. He also said that Western countries were "determined to do everything it takes to prevent Russia" from gaining the upper hand in the conflict.