Macron proposes halt to refinery and energy-grid strikes in Ukraine war
French President Emmanuel Macron says Russia treats Europe as Ukraine's strategic depth, as he pitches a two-way freeze on energy strikes
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French President Emmanuel Macron has proposed a double moratorium in the Ukraine war: Kyiv would stop striking Russian refineries, and Moscow would commit to sparing Ukraine's energy system and civilian infrastructure. Macron warned that Russia considers Europe to be Ukraine's strategic depth.
The proposal comes as Russia's own fuel export outlook has deteriorated. A draft government forecast cut Russia's expected 2026 fuel exports to 98.5 million tons, down 24.1 million tons from an estimate made in May, a sign of the toll Ukrainian strikes on refineries have taken.
Moscow has so far shown little appetite for a partial deal of this kind. The Kremlin has said it wants a full peace settlement rather than a ceasefire, and has called the European Union's move to funnel frozen Russian asset revenue to Ukraine illegal. Russian investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev has traveled to Washington for fresh talks with the Trump administration, after Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in New York. On the Ukrainian side, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukrainian drones now reach Russian factories as far as Siberia and has warned of consequences if Russia keeps targeting Ukraine's energy grid.
Macron's proposal follows separate warnings from him that Russia is multiplying hostile and criminal acts against France, prompting extra protection for French sites, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has said the alliance is prepared for Russian hybrid attacks. A credible freeze on refinery strikes would ease immediate concerns about crude supply and could pull some risk premium out of oil prices, but that depends on whether Russia would actually hold off from hitting civilian infrastructure rather than keep it as a bargaining chip.