STANDARDDIPLOMATICVERIFIED
Macron calls for immediate moratorium on energy and water infrastructure strikes after talking to Trump and Qatar emir
·Brussels, Belgium (EU Council meeting)
French President Emmanuel Macron called for an immediate moratorium on striking civilian infrastructure — particularly energy and water facilities — saying civilian populations must be 'protected from military escalation.' The call came after Macron spoke with both President Trump and the Emir of Qatar. He also told reporters in Brussels: 'This escalation is reckless.' Germany's Economy Minister Reiche separately warned of a 'massive slump' risk.
'This escalation is reckless,' President Emmanuel Macron of France said on Thursday after the latest tit-for-tat attacks on energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf. 'I hope everyone comes to their senses,' he told reporters in Brussels. Macron noted that shipping was already disrupted in the Strait of Hormuz. 'But if the production facilities themselves are destroyed, the impact of this war will be much more long-lasting,' he said.
Germany's Economy Minister Katherina Reiche also warned that attacks on oil refineries and gas fields in the Middle East would add to the problems caused by the de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. 'That can actually lead to a massive slump,' she said at a meeting of the ruling party's economic council on Thursday, per German news wire DPA.
MacronFranceEUBrusselsGermanydiplomaticenergy warHormuz
Actor responses
No immediate US response to Macron's 'reckless' comment. Hegseth/Caine press conference scheduled for 8am ET.
Sources