Macron denies France obtained CIA warning of Russian drone assault
French President Emmanuel Macron has denied claims that the CIA had knowledgeable France of a attainable Russian drone operation focusing on southern Europe.
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In a joint interview aired on broadcasters France 2 and TF1 he mentioned “We can deny this piece of data, the CIA didn’t inform France of this data and the Italian defence minister mentioned the identical factor”.
On Thursday, Spanish day by day newspaper El Mundo printed an article which declared that the CIA had alerted a number of southern European governments to a attainable Russian drone operation focusing on Spain, France and Italy.
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto subsequently denied these allegations on Thursday, declaring on X that “the alarm raised this morning by a Spanish newspaper that hypothesises attainable assaults on Italy, Spain, and France by Russian ships and drones serves nobody and isn’t confirmed.”
“We already dwell in troublesome, ‘nervous’ occasions, and nobody wants extra gas on the hearth”, he added.
Russia’s risk in opposition to Europe
Addressing Russia’s ongoing and intensifying hybrid marketing campaign in opposition to Europe, Macron referred to the drone assault on Leipzig/Halle Airport on the night time of 4-5 August 2026, which German authorities have attributed to Russia.
Macron mentioned France had not skilled a comparable assault thus far however warned that one remained attainable. “When you ask me, ‘Could this occur?’ my reply is sure,” he mentioned.
The French President pressured that Russia considers “Europe to be the strategic coronary heart of Ukraine,” whereas additionally saying that the potential for Russia looking for to launch an assault in opposition to Europe was “believable.”
“It is evident that there have been a number of indicators indicating that Russia is making ready to do that,” he acknowledged.
As hypothesis mounts over Russia’s attainable mobilisation plans, Macron mentioned {that a} new mobilisation of round 300,000 personnel was a “credible situation” that was “typically shared”.
The French chief mentioned he seen this as an indication that Moscow was ready to “make even larger sacrifices to take over the complete Donbas”, estimating that Russia would want to advance for “a yr and a half, two years” on the present tempo to overcome the territories it doesn’t but management in that area, “with horrible losses and struggling for Ukraine.”
