Macron denies CIA alert on Russian drone attack in France

Emmanuel Macron affirmed that the CIA “did not inform the French services” of a possible Russian drone attack targeting the south of France, contrary to allegations published in foreign media. “I can deny it. The CIA did not inform the French services,” he declared in an interview with the French television channels TF1 and France 2.

The Spanish daily El Mundo claimed this Thursday morning that the CIA had alerted several European governments of a possible Russian drone operation against strategic sites. France, Spain and Italy were notably warned of a possible attack on their territory. The report reportedly mentions drones launched from the sea and hidden in containers. This warning would have been taken seriously by the French authorities, according to several analysts cited by the newspaper. Claims undermined by Emmanuel Macron.

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The head of state, however, estimated during his interview that France could be targeted by an attempted attack using a drone loaded with explosives, as at Leipzig airport in early August. An attack that Germany attributed to Russia. France has not yet experienced attacks of this type, “but when you ask me the question: “Can it happen?”, my answer is yes,” he said, adding that Russia considers that “Europe is the strategic depth of Ukraine”.