France reacts to propaganda lie about cocaine on train to Kyiv

France has firmly denied rumors that President Emmanuel Macron allegedly carried a bag of cocaine on a train en route to Kyiv. "This is a handkerchief. For blowing your nose," the Élysée Palace wrote on Platform X, showing a close-up of the white object.

"When European unity is disrupted, disinformation goes so far as to portray a simple handkerchief as a drug. This misinformation is spread by France's internal and external enemies."

Macron traveled to Ukraine on Friday evening with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. A rumor subsequently circulated online that Macron had taken a bag of cocaine from the table in his train compartment when journalists arrived for a photo opportunity and hidden it. Merz, for his part, allegedly hid a spoon for consuming cocaine.

Users shared a low-quality video of the incident. High-resolution footage shows that the object in front of Merz was a stirrer for a drink or a small skewer for snacks, but not a spoon.

"Beware of manipulation," warned the Élysée Palace on Platform X. The rumor had been spread, among other places, on a website whose design closely resembles one identified by France as part of the Russian propaganda network. The allegations were also picked up and disseminated by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.