FRANCE: French President Emmanuel Macron has welcomed the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran, saying that while the agreement does not immediately resolve every outstanding issue between Washington and Tehran, it remains a positive development.
“Does it solve everything right away? No,” Macron told reporters, acknowledging that challenges between the two countries still remain.
However, he stressed that the alternative would have been a continuation of conflict with serious regional and global consequences.
“But what was continuing the war? Having Hormuz closed for months; taking the risk of destroying oil and gas capacities, which would have destabilised everything for months – even years; continuing the loss of life and the unacceptable situation in Lebanon and the collapse of the entire region,” Macron said.
The French president said there was a collective obligation to prevent further escalation and instability.
“We have a humanitarian, political and economic responsibility,” he said.
Macron added that the agreement was significant because it helps bring an end to hostilities across a wide area of the Middle East.
“So this agreement that ends the fighting everywhere, from the Strait of Hormuz to Lebanon, is a good thing,” he said.