French President Macron will not attend Russian stand at book fair in Paris
According to the statement released by the Élysée Palace, French President Emmanuel Macron will not attend the Russian exhibition stand at the book fair in Paris due to the Russian Federation’s possible involvement in the recent poisoning of an ex-spy, Le Figaro reports.
According to the report, Macron will not patronize the Russian stand even though Russia is an honorary guest of the event. "The President will not attend the official pavilion of Russia at the book fair… due to the assault in Salisbury and due to our solidarity with the United Kingdom," the Élysée Palace said.
However, the report also stated that Macron would still meet with Russian writers.
As earlier reported, the United Kingdom expelled 23 Russian diplomats from the country and terminated top-level diplomatic contacts with the Russian Federation due to the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter.
The United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany have made a joint statement in which they accused Russia of the crime.