In sign of solidarity, new French foreign minister heads to Ukraine

By John Irish

PARIS (Reuters) -France’s newly-appointed Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne is on his way to Ukraine, his first official trip, three diplomatic sources said on Friday, as Paris looks to reassure Kyiv of its support as the war with Russia nears its second anniversary.

The trip comes at a time when political infighting in the United States and European Union has held up two major packages of assistance for Ukraine.

“It’s a positive signal that he has made Kyiv his priority so soon in taking his position,” said one diplomat.

A second French diplomatic source said it was deemed important to maintain a trip initially planned under the previous minister to underscore Paris’ commitment at a time when things were tougher for Ukraine.

Sejourne is due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Parliamentary speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, two diplomats said.

Sejourne, 38, a European lawmaker, is a novice on the international diplomatic scene and was surprisingly appointed on Thursday to replace Catherine Colonna.

Unlike his predecessor, who had no real political weighting, Sejourne is close to President Emmanuel Macron.

He is one of the “Macron boys” who helped him win the presidency in 2017 and was leading the Renew group in the European Parliament and Macron’s Renaissance party in France.

“I know what France means in the world and I know the power of diplomacy and negotiation,” he said during the transfer of power with Colonna.

He said he would work for “an independent France in a powerful Europe” and planned to travel to Berlin and Warsaw in the coming days to strengthen ties between the three countries.

France is working to complete a bilateral security guarantee accord with Ukraine at the start of this year to help boost its finances and defences against Russia with a view to deterring Moscow from future aggression.

(Reporting by John Irish;Writing by Tassilo Hummel;Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta, Kirsten Donovan)