Warning After Macron-Putin Call: 'Worst Is Yet to Come'

France's Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone with Vladimir Putin for about 90 minutes on Thursday, but it yielded no progress on Ukraine. In fact, it appears that Russia is only going to get more aggressive:

• From France: “Our analysis of the military operations is that the Russian ambitions are to take control of all of Ukraine,” said a senior French official who spoke to reporters about the call, per the New York Times. He said that Macron warned Putin he was making a "serious mistake," but that the Russian leader didn't budge. Macron expressed "pessimism" after the conversation, said the official. "We have to expect that the worst is to come,” he added. “There is nothing in what President Putin said that should reassure us."

• The Kremlin: In its readout of the call, the Kremlin said the military operation was going "according to plan." Russia continued to insist on the "demilitarization" of Ukraine "so that a threat to the Russian Federation will never emanate from its territory," per Reuters. "It was emphasized that the tasks of the special military operation will be fulfilled in any event."
• Hope: Despite the pessimism, the French official held out hope for future talks, though he said they cannot be "under Russian control" and must instead be set up by international partner, reports CNN. The stories note that the Macron-Putin call was initiated by Putin.

(More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)