Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, quoted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his speech at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) while referring to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. The 77th UNGA session is currently being held at the UN’s headquarters in New York City.

In his speech, Macron said, “Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India was right when he said the time is not for war. It is not for revenge against the West, or for opposing the West against the east. It is the time for a collective time for our sovereign equal states. To cope together with challenges we face”.

Check out Macron’s comments right here:

Macron reference was to a conversation Modi had with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, which took place on the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit’s sidelines. During the conversation, the 72-year-old Indian leader said, “Today’s era is not of war and I have spoken to you about it on the call. Today we will get the opportunity to talk about how we can progress on the path of peace. India and Russia have stayed together with each other for several decades.”

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Putin, in response, had said, “I know about your position on the Ukraine conflict. I know about your concerns. We want all of this to end as soon as possible”.

Putin had also said that Ukraine is not interested in negotiations and are instead willing to sort out their differences on the battlefield. “We will keep you abreast of everything that is happening over there”, he reassured Modi.

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The 69-year-old former KGB official also thanked Modi during the conversation for increasing the supply of Russian fertilizers in Indian markets. 

In his speech, Macron also said,  “those who remain silent today…are serving the cause of a new imperialism, a contemporary cynicism that is destroying the world order.”