Hollande invited Poroshenko to Normandy

France President Francois Hollande, in a telephone conversation with the presidential election in Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko invited him to the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the allied landing in Normandy. It is reported by Zn.ua with reference to a source in Ukrainian diplomatic circles.

Earlier, the personal friend of Hollande, the French writer and philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy, in an interview with the publication, said that he would invite the French president to invite Poroshenko to the celebrations in Normandy.

When asked why Hollande invited Putin, and not the presidents of Ukraine, Belarus and other former republics of the USSR, Levy replied: “You have a very good idea. I think the only way to erase shame and shame that will be Putin’s presence in Normandy is also inviting the president of Ukraine. Because Ukraine paid a very high human price - about 8 million dead.”

On Wednesday, Bild said that world leaders refuse to sit next to Vladimir Putin on the rostrum of honored guests during the upcoming celebrations on June 6 in Normandy. They also do not want them to be captured with Putin in a common photo. According to the publication, this was made to the organizers of the US President Barack Obama, the Queen of Great Britain Elizabeth II and many other participants in the ceremony.

Now the organizers of the event are resolving the issue of how, without violating the protocol, to protest against the Russian annexation of Crimea and subversive activities in Ukraine. Among others, to clearly identify the distance between Putin and other participants in the celebrations is required by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

As the publication notes, it is impossible to defiantly isolate Putin, since such a step against the representative of one of the countries - winners of Nazi Germany would be regarded as an insult. The organizers propose to abandon bilateral meetings with the Russian leader, usual for such events. The final decision about who to plant next to Putin on the rostrum will accept France President Francois Hollande as the owner of the event.

In early May, the representative of the US State Department Marie Harf said that Obama did not intend to meet with Putin at celebrations in Normandy. The official explained this decision to the role of Russia in the events in Ukraine. "I do not think that we will meet him, given what is happening," said Harf.