On Tuesday, Macron said that groundwork is advancing to restart direct Europe-Russia talks. The French leader stressed the importance for Europeans to "restore their own channels of communication," which are being prepared.
"We are in constant contact with the member states. The president speaks with the leaders. We are constantly in contact on a technical level. We are not going to comment on all these contacts," Podesta told a briefing.
On January 20, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that European leaders' calls for dialogue with Russia were not genuine and advised those wishing to seriously engage with Russia to avoid making loud public statement, but rather "just give a call."