Macron Says Putin Is Dodging Talks And Wants To Darken Ukraine This Winter

Speaking Saturday, French President Emmanuel Macron said Vladimir Putin is not looking for a deal with Ukraine — he's looking for a surrender. Macron accused Moscow of escalating strikes on civilians and targeting energy infrastructure to quote-enderswipe Ukraine's power grid and plunge the country into darkness over the winter.

Macron pushed back hard on allies he said want to ration Ukraine's resources, calling continued support essential. He hailed as historic a declaration on the key principles of European security adopted by 42 countries at this week's European Political Community summit. But he said more work remains, including a clear picture of post-war European security and of the United States' long-term role. His closing line: achieving a just and lasting peace for Ukraine, then building a common security framework for Europe together with everyone.

Moscow kept up the pressure on the ground the same day. Russia's Defense Ministry said its drones struck Ukrainian port infrastructure and vessels it claims were supporting Ukraine's military, targeting the port of Chornomorsk on the northwestern Black Sea coast. According to the ministry, a cargo ship carrying military supplies for Ukraine's armed forces was hit, along with port facilities used to unload military equipment.

Ukraine's Naftogaz Group said a Russian drone attack hit one of its facilities in the Poltava region Saturday and sparked a large fire. Employees were in shelters when it struck, and emergency crews rushed to the site. Naftogaz said the scale of the damage will be assessed once security allows, and noted that attacks on its infrastructure have been happening almost daily this week.

On the diplomatic track, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said Moscow has no interest in dictating who sits on Europe's negotiating team in any peace talks. He told the Yanushev Telegram channel that setting such conditions would be wrong, and said Moscow wants dialogue with Europeans to see how their position could feed the peace process. Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters Ukraine doesn't buy SpaceX's explanation that recent Starlink disruptions in the country were technical, calling the five-day restrictions something else entirely.