Macron said he had ordered a plan to protect critical infrastructure and defence industry sites in the face of this threat.
In a news conference at the Elysee Palace, Emmanuel Macron was speaking to journalists after meeting party leaders to discuss the security impact of the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.
He said France had been targeted by Russian hybrid attacks in the past few weeks which would not be left “without a response”.
“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.”
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.
Emmanuel 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.
