Talking To President Macron, Putin: West Must Stop Arms Supply To Ukraine.

President Macron with President Putin. (Source: Kremlin.ru)

JAKARTA - Russian President Vladimir Putin told French leader Emmanuel Macron the West should stop supplying weapons to Ukraine, and accused Kyiv of not taking negotiations seriously, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.

President Putin accuses Ukrainian troops of war crimes and claims the European Union ignores them.

"The West can help stop these atrocities by putting relevant pressure on the Kyiv authorities, as well as stopping the supply of weapons to Ukraine," he said.

President Putin further said Kyiv was not consistent or ready for "serious work" in ending the conflict.

"The Russian side is still open to dialogue," he told Macron, according to the Kremlin.

Meanwhile, President Macron's office said that despite repeated calls for Russia to end attacks on its neighbors with a ceasefire and peace talks, it urged President Putin to allow the evacuation of the besieged Azovstal steel plant in the port city of Mariupol to proceed.

He also offered to "work with relevant international organizations, to help break the Russian blockade on Ukrainian food exports via the Black Sea, given the consequences for global food security".

President Putin linked the food situation to western sanctions against Russia, "noting the importance of the functioning of global logistics and unhindered transport infrastructure", the Kremlin said.

President Macron is one of the few western leaders to have spoken to President Putin since Moscow moved troops to Ukraine on February 24. He had spent hours on the phone trying to negotiate a resolution to the conflict.

The war has killed thousands and displaced more than 13 million, creating Europe's worst refugee crisis since the Second World War.