An Olympics truce? Emmanuel Macron blasts Putin for rejecting Ukraine cease-fire during Paris Games

“Every week until now, President Putin was claiming to be available for peace,” the French president told CNBC in an interview this week in Paris.

An Olympics truce? Emmanuel Macron blasts Putin for rejecting Ukraine cease-fire during Paris Games

Russian President Vladimir Putin's rejection of a temporary “Olympic truce” shows he is “not ready to make peace” in Ukraine, French leader Emmanuel Macron has told CNBC.

Macron and others have urged a temporary cease-fire during the Games held in Paris between July 26 and Aug. 11.

Both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have rejected this idea, however, with the Russian leader protesting the Olympic ban on Russia's flag, and his Ukrainian counterpart saying such a pause would only benefit Moscow on the battlefield.

“Every week until now, President Putin was claiming to be available for peace,” Macron said in an interview this week in Paris with CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin. He did not discuss Zelenskyy's rejection of the proposal, but said that Putin “is the one who decided to launch this war” and declining the truce shows the world “he is not ready to make peace.”

Macron called for the truce earlier this month alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping, who was on a visit to France at the time. Xi has declared a “no limits” partnership with Putin despite claiming China is neutral when it comes to the conflict in Ukraine.

Macron said that an Olympic truce could be used as an opportunity to build both ties with China and a longer-term end to the war, whatever that may look like, a theme he reiterated in his interview.

“Look, a truce is not for me the endgame; sustainable peace is the endgame,” he said. “But I think it’s very important, this tradition, and it’s very important to use this window” during the Olympics.

“I think this is a very good opportunity, first diplomatically to engage with China and others and say, ‘OK, you are on the peace side. Get with us and help us to do so,’” he said. “And, second, to maximize the level of pressure on those who decided to launch a war,” he added, referring to Russia.

Macron has become increasingly hawkish on Russia in recent months, most notably refusing to rule out sending Western troops to the Ukrainian battlefield, in a pivot that has stoked fury from the Kremlin.

Asked about such a truce last week, Putin said the sentiment was “very right” but accused the International Olympic Committee of "violations" to its own principles by banning Russian athletes from competing under their country's own flag or name.

In an interview with the AFP news agency, Zelenskyy said he was against “any truce that plays into the hands of the enemy.”

The concept of the Olympic truce — or Ekecheiria, meaning “holding of hands,” as it is known in the original Greek — dates back to the inaugural ancient Games in 776 BC, according to the IOC. It was implemented as a way to allow athletes and spectators to travel between the often warring Greek city states.

It was revived and formally adopted by the IOC in 1993 in response to the ongoing Balkan wars. In reality, it has been ignored at least three times since then — all involving Russia.

The Russia-Georgia War started during Beijing 2008. And Moscow’s 2014 occupation of Crimea happened during Russia’s own Sochi Winter Olympics and Paralympics, as did its full-scale invasion of Ukraine during Beijing 2022.

This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. More from NBC News:

OTHER NEWS

25 minutes ago

African Court of Justice impotent in ending human rights abuses

30 minutes ago

Western leaders reject Russia's peace offer

30 minutes ago

Kensington Palace post behind-the-scenes preparations for the King’s birthday

30 minutes ago

Croke Park brawl, penalties and All-Ireland Group deciders - the Armagh v Galway trilogy

30 minutes ago

Jets RB Breece Hall ready for showdown with former teammate Brock Purdy

30 minutes ago

Emmett Bradley's late goal saves Derry's season against Westmeath

30 minutes ago

Ledecky punches ticket to Paris Games, Walsh sets world record in Indy

30 minutes ago

Labor's climate goals are why you are 'paying so much' for your groceries: Peter Dutton

31 minutes ago

Giovanni Pernice makes first statement after Strictly Come Dancing exit

31 minutes ago

‘I am the original Brexiteer’ - Rishi Sunak hits back at Nigel Farage challenge

31 minutes ago

Security forces storm a detention center in southern Russia, killing an unknown number of hostage takers

32 minutes ago

Las Vegas Raiders insider suggests pair of mult-time Pro Bowlers could be summer free agent additions

32 minutes ago

After Maharashtra setback, how BJP is planning to regroup, bridge gap with MVA

32 minutes ago

Insiders predict Rust Belt Republican, possible Trump VP pick, could flip Biden votes in key swing states

32 minutes ago

For Ukrainians in Canada, new conscription rules increase pressure to fight

32 minutes ago

‘Wear a helmet’: Gordon Ramsay shows off full torso bruise after bike accident

32 minutes ago

Putin's nuclear submarine detected off UK coast

32 minutes ago

Trump challenges Biden to take cognitive test - only to get name of his own doctor wrong

32 minutes ago

T20 World Cup: England qualify for Super 8s after rain and Australia fumbles make for nervous group finale

32 minutes ago

How to reverse austerity? Scrap some of the tax-relief schemes worth £204bn

32 minutes ago

Italy's swift response secures victory after record breaking Albania start

32 minutes ago

NRL Highlights: Knights v Panthers - Round 15

32 minutes ago

Down 50%, this FTSE dividend stock looks like a steal to me

32 minutes ago

Australia's record population surge is being driven by Indian migration: Here's why so many of them are moving here - and what they really think about life Down Under

32 minutes ago

Video: Terrifying moment 7ft shark swims at speed towards Gran Canaria shore - with beach forced to close to bathing after sparking fear among tourists and locals

32 minutes ago

Video: Former MI6 agent rates the best and worst spy devices available on Amazon including a lie detector test and rearview sunglasses - and reveals why crisps are the 'best intruder detection system ever invented'

35 minutes ago

‘Dangerous conditions’: Damaging surf warnings in place for parts of the east coast

38 minutes ago

Tories and Labour clash on tax as General Election battles intensify

38 minutes ago

The Andy Griffith Show's Ron Howard Reveals Jokes Killed by Andy Griffith

38 minutes ago

Mbappé wants to erase bad memory of decisive penalty miss and leave Euro 2024 as a champion

38 minutes ago

Gig for Gaza event in Canberra raises funds for Australian doctors working in Palestine

38 minutes ago

Scientists sound alarm after making disturbing discovery in the Amazon: 'We have all this information; now let's act on it'

38 minutes ago

Luai stars as Panthers survive Knights scare

38 minutes ago

Serbia XI vs England: Predicted lineup, confirmed Euro 2024 team news and injuries today

38 minutes ago

Transit expert highlights issues with popular design trend in truck and SUV models: 'It honestly infuriates me'

38 minutes ago

Revealed: The ultimate dad jokes this Father's Day, according to AI - so, would they make you laugh?

38 minutes ago

UK's 'tallest rollercoaster' Hyperia at Thorpe Park 'breaks down' - with thrill-seekers stuck on ride at 236ft for an HOUR just days after reopening

38 minutes ago

Hundreds of Majorcans take over tiny picture postcard cove made famous by Instagram 'influencers' and unfurl banners reading 'SOS Residents' amid Spanish island's anti-tourism backlash against UK holidaymakers

38 minutes ago

Woman claims she was fined £200 for littering after seagulls ate a few McDonald's chips she accidentally dropped on the floor

38 minutes ago

Can I take legal action if I buy a house with invasive bamboo? And do I need to tell buyers if my home's infested? MailOnline answers your questions about 'Japanese knotweed 2.0'