France's Macron accuses Putin of 'blackmail' over nuclear threat

By Shweta Desai

PARIS (AA) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday criticized Russia’s Vladimir Putin for trying to “blackmail” the West with nuclear threats, saying his latest moves indicate Moscow is under pressure.

Putin’s words are “obviously blackmail,” Macron told French broadcaster BFMTV.

On the nuclear warning, he said Russia “has these weapons and the risk is still there.”

Putin announced a partial mobilization of around 300,000 Russians on Wednesday, and alluded to using nuclear weapons to protect Russia from Western aggression.

Macron said Moscow’s actions prove that it is “in distress militarily, economically, and diplomatically.”

He said Russian forces are facing a counteroffensive in Ukraine, the ruble has plummeted, companies are leaving Russia, and the country finds itself diplomatically isolated.

Macron called on European leaders to pursue efforts to restore dialogue to end the war.

The end of the Ukraine war can only come around a negotiating table, he stressed.

If peace is to be achieved, Macron said Russia will need to guarantee Ukraine’s territorial integrity and assure Kyiv that its borders will be the same as they were before the war began on Feb. 24.