French President Emmanuel Macron called the Russian Federation not the side subjected to aggression, but an aggressor, and also called the assertion that the Russian Federation is allegedly "fighting Nazism in Ukraine" a lie.

"This war is not a conflict between NATO and the West on the one hand and Russia on the other, as some may describe it. There are no NATO bases or troops in Ukraine," the French president said in an address to the French on Wednesday.

He stressed that Russia is not subjected to aggression – it is the aggressor.

Macron also called the assertion of Russian propaganda that there is a war against Nazism a lie.

"This is a lie, an insult to the history of Russia and the history of Ukraine, which fought against Nazism," he stressed.

At the same time, he noted that "we are not at war with Russia."

"We are aware of everything that connects us with this great European people, the people of Russia, who sacrificed a lot during the Second World War to pull Europe out of the abyss. We support all Russians who, refusing to have a shameful war waged from their name, have a sense of responsibility and courage to defend the world, and who show this in Russia and beyond," Macron said.

So, he recalled that he is constantly negotiating with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and will also "be in contact, as far as possible and necessary, with President Putin in order to tirelessly try to convince him to lay down his arms."