- Published
French President Emmanuel Macron has warned that the threat of hybrid attacks by Russia against Europe and France has intensified.
In a news conference at the Elysee Palace, Macron said he had ordered a plan to protect critical infrastructure and defence industry sites in the face of this threat.
He said France had been targeted by Russian hybrid attacks in the past few weeks which would not be left "without a response".
A growing number of European leaders have warned that Russia may be preparing attacks to test their commitment to supporting Ukraine.
War may be coming. Are we psychologically ready?
- Published20 hours ago
Hybrid warfare or hybrid attacks are loose terms which tend to describe non-military methods, for example cyberattacks, sabotage or misinformation, designed to exert pressure and destabilise an adversary.
These are quite often employed using proxies, but Russia always denies involvement in such attacks despite growing evidence to the contrary.
The French president was speaking to journalists after meeting party leaders to discuss the security impact of the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.
Macron mentioned last month's drone attack on Leipzig airport in Germany, blamed on Russia, and remarks by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk suggesting Russia was planning drone and missile strikes against Poland and other countries on Nato's eastern flank.
"In recent weeks, the Russian hybrid threat against Europeans and against France has intensified," he said.
"The intent is to intimidate us and break our effort to support Ukraine. The result will be the exact opposite. We are not intimidated because we know that our security today and tomorrow is at stake in Ukraine."
On Thursday Tusk told Polish MPs that Russian plans included strikes by drones and missiles on countries supporting Ukraine. He said there was a "real risk" of such strikes on the territory of Nato countries, with Moscow then claiming that they were "accidental", in an attempt to split the alliance.
Last Sunday, a Russian drone hit a passenger train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and top European security officials had passed through along the same line.
Ukraine said all the passengers had been evacuated just minutes before the strike at Yahodyn, which hit the train's engine.
There have also been a number of suspicious fires at defence facilities from Italy to Estonia, with some of the affected countries blaming Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said Russia does not plan to attack Europe, but Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned European nations against sending troops to Ukraine, which would be seen by Russia as a declaration of war.
"If Europe attacks Russia, it will be a completely different war, and it will be very short," he said.
Meanwhile on Friday, Russia reiterated its warning to the UK that any British military facilities in Ukraine used to strike Russian territory were "legitimate targets".
It reserved the right to take "necessary counter-measures" in response to the UK's "fiercely confrontational stance regarding Ukraine", referring to its supply of drones and other weapon systems to Kyiv.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Macron also addressed the energy situation, saying that the government had been tasked with protecting critical infrastructure and the "most sensitive" defence industry and technology sites against drone and cyberattacks.
He announced that France would call a meeting of the G7 to discuss energy and raise the question of gas stocks with the European Commission.
"In the coming weeks, we will have a G7 meeting devoted to these energy issues, both to strengthen cooperation and to avoid unnecessary tensions between the G7 countries and our main partners," Macron said.
"It will also be an opportunity to consider options for a possible release or unlocking of strategic reserves."
In a domestic context, he called on candidates in next year's elections not to exploit public unease by blaming the government, but to acknowledge that fuel price inflation was the result of uncontrollable international circumstances.
The hard-right opposition National Rally candidate Marine le Pen is currently leading the polls for the April-May vote to replace Macron.
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Facts Only
* French President Emmanuel Macron warned of intensified Russian hybrid attacks against Europe and France.
* Macron ordered a plan to protect critical infrastructure and defense industry sites.
* France faced Russian hybrid attacks in the past few weeks requiring a response.
* Several European leaders warned about Russia preparing attacks to test support for Ukraine.
* Remarks were made concerning a drone attack on Leipzig airport blamed on Russia.
* Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk suggested Russian plans included strikes by drones and missiles against Poland and other countries on NATO's eastern flank.
* A Russian drone hit a passenger train near the Ukraine-Poland border shortly after transit of UK and European officials.
* Suspicious fires occurred at defense facilities from Italy to Estonia, with some blaming Russia.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin stated Russia does not plan to attack Europe.
* Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned against sending troops to Ukraine as a declaration of war.
* Russia reiterated that strikes on British military facilities in Ukraine were legitimate targets and reserved the right to take countermeasures.
* Macron announced France would call a G7 meeting on energy issues.
Executive Summary
Full Take
The narrative presented frames the security environment through an escalating cycle where geopolitical conflict (Ukraine) is leveraged by non-military means (hybrid attacks) against perceived adversaries. The core tension lies in the psychological preparedness versus perceived external threat, creating a feedback loop where fear drives policy responses. The simultaneous reporting of specific incidents—drone strikes, border events, and infrastructure warnings—serves to create an impression of omnipresent, unpredictable danger, which is central to hybrid warfare strategy.
The pattern observed involves the strategic use of ambiguity: Russia denies involvement in hybrid actions while evidence accumulates, and military/geopolitical events are framed by opposing sides as existential threats demanding immediate action. The juxtaposition of rhetoric—Putin’s denial versus Lavrov’s warning, and Macron’s focus on energy reserves versus security—highlights a strategic decoupling where immediate crises (energy instability) are used to diffuse attention from the underlying strategic competition. This forces domestic audiences into a choice regarding attribution and response.
The implication for human agency is whether political and military decisions are driven by objective threat assessment or by reactive fear management aimed at internal consensus. The mechanism seems designed to consolidate existing alliances by emphasizing shared vulnerability while simultaneously creating doubt about future security guarantees, pushing actors toward preemptive, possibly destabilizing, actions rather than transparent negotiation.
Bridge Questions: How do differing threat perceptions within the EU influence the coordination of defense responses? What are the long-term societal costs associated with maintaining a state of persistent, elevated anxiety regarding hybrid threats? If states prioritize immediate stability over definitive attribution, what mechanisms can be established to restore trust in shared security frameworks?