"The visit of the Senate President expresses a desire to maintain relations with Russia, which has traditionally been a part of French politics," Mezard said, adding that the relations between the two countries are highly valuable as Russia and France comprise the main pillar of support in maintaining balance in Europe.
The French Senator stressed that as President of the French Senate, Larcher cannot express any views that would run counter to the official position of the French government, that is why he stressed the importance of a full implementation of the Minsk ceasefire agreements as one of preconditions for the lifting of economic sanctions that the European Union has imposed against Russia over the situation in Ukraine.
"Mr. Larcher's visit simultaneously carries a message of friendship and an opportunity to directly express it to Russia and Russian parliamentarians," Mezard said, explaining that the leader of the French Senate can express his concerns over certain aspects of the Ukrainian crisis but cannot deviate from the official position of France.
"Many of our fellow citizens would like to see peace in Ukraine and maintain good relations with Russia," Mezard stressed, saying that this strive to preserve positive ties with Moscow was one of the key reasons behind Larcher's visit to the Russian capital.
Relations between Russia and the West deteriorated sharply after the United States, the European Union and their allies accused Moscow of interfering in Ukraine's internal affairs and imposed a series of sanctions on Russia's banking, defense and energy industries.
Russia has repeatedly denied any involvement in Ukraine's internal affairs, calling the sanctions counterproductive. Russia has also been actively taking part in Ukraine reconciliation efforts. The latest ceasefire agreement signed between Kiev forces and independence supporters in southeaster Ukraine was the result of 16-hour talks between the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine in the Belarusian capital, Minsk.
