On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron warned Russia not to take advantage of the incident by blaming it on Ukraine, stating that France has intelligence indicating that Islamic State (IS) was responsible for Friday’s attack on a Moscow concert venue.
Arriving on a tour to the French South American enclave of French Guiana, Macron told reporters that France has intelligence suggesting “it was an entity of Islamic State that planned the attack and carried it out.”
He added that “this particular group made several attempts (at attacks) on our own soil.”
Macron however warned Russia against any “exploitation” of the attack, saying it would be “cynical and counterproductive for Russia to use this context to try and turn it against Ukraine”.
IS has claimed responsibility for the Friday evening attack in Moscow in which 137 people were killed.
However, security agencies and President Vladimir Putin have suggested that the culprits may have been connected to Kyiv, Moscow’s rival, and have declined to comment on the allegation.
Speaking of “increased cooperation” between Paris and Moscow’s security agencies, Macron stated that meetings with Putin will take place on a “technical and ministerial level” instead of face-to-face.
Since attempting to dissuade Putin from invading Ukraine through a series of phone conversations in 2022, the leader of France has not spoken with Putin.
“We’ll see how the context evolves and whether the coming days or weeks justify” a personal conversation, Macron said.
