Presidents Lead Wave of New 'Cellphone Diplomacy'

When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky interrupted a press conference he was holding to answer a telephone call from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, he opened a window into a new world of geopolitical diplomacy.

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Paris — When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky interrupted a press conference he was holding to answer a telephone call from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, he opened a window into a new world of geopolitical diplomacy.

"Can I call you back in 15 to 20 minutes?" Zelensky asked Macron before returning to reporters' questions.

He then revealed that he spoke to Macron "once a day."

Cellphone exchanges between world leaders are "a new diplomacy" that is "more direct and spontaneous" and allows for "more frequent, quicker" contact, said a Macron aide.

The French president speaks to Zelensky and US President Donald Trump "almost every day," a member of his team said.

The same goes for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Cellphone diplomacy is having knock-on effects, though, sidelining diplomats who are now no longer essential mediums of geopolitical communication.