AP

Macron: Turn out the lights, brace for Russian gas cutoff

Jul 14, 2022, 7:50 AM | Updated: 9:23 am

French President Emmanuel Macron waves next to Chief of Staff Gen Thierry Burkhard during the Basti...

French President Emmanuel Macron waves next to Chief of Staff Gen Thierry Burkhard during the Bastille Day parade Thursday, July 14, 2022 in Paris. France is celebrating its national holiday with thousands of French troops marching down the Champs-Elysees avenue alongside allies from Eastern Europe. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, Pool)

(AP Photo/Michel Euler, Pool)

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron warned his country’s people Thursday to prepare for a total cutoff of Russian natural gas by supporting alternatives, having public lights switched off at night and engaging in a period of nationwide energy “sobriety.”

The Russian invasion of Ukraine and ensuing sanctions have aggravated other factors driving up prices for energy and others goods. With no end in sight for the Ukraine war, Macron said, the French should brace themselves for costs to remain high.

“This war will continue,” he said in a televised interview marking France’s national holiday, Bastille Day. “The summer, early autumn will be very hard.”

“Russia is using energy, like it is using food, as a weapon of war,” Macron said. “We should prepare ourselves for the scenario where we have to go without all Russian gas.”

He said the government would prepare a “sobriety plan” to conserve energy, which would start with turning off public lights at night when they aren’t useful.

France will keep looking to diversify gas sources, he said, calling for a faster shift toward offshore windfarms and more European cross-border energy cooperation to weather the current crisis.

Macron’s political opponents on the far right and far left have blamed EU sanctions for reducing the purchasing power of French consumers while failing to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to pull troops out of Ukraine.

France’s president gave no indication during the interview of policy shift toward Ukraine.

“What do you want us to do?” he asked. “We want to stop this war without getting involved in this war. At the same time, we want to do everything so that Russia doesn’t win, so that Ukraine can defend its territory. We don’t want a world war.”

___

Follow AP’s coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


              French President Emmanuel Macron reviews the troops during the annual Bastille Day military parade, in Paris, Thursday, July 14, 2022. France is celebrating its national holiday with thousands of French troops marching down the Champs-Elysees avenue alongside allies from Eastern Europe. (Sarah Meyssonnier, pool via AP)
            
              French President Emmanuel Macron waves next to Chief of Staff Gen Thierry Burkhard during the Bastille Day parade Thursday, July 14, 2022 in Paris. France is celebrating its national holiday with thousands of French troops marching down the Champs-Elysees avenue alongside allies from Eastern Europe. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, Pool)

AP

Lead water pipes pulled from underneath the street are seen in Newark, N.J., Oct. 21, 2021. (AP Pho...

Associated Press

Biden to require cities to replace harmful lead pipes within 10 years

The Biden administration has previously said it wants all of the nation's roughly 9 million lead pipes to be removed, and rapidly.

1 day ago

Facebook's Meta logo sign is seen at the company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., on, Oct. 28, 2...

Associated Press

Meta shuts down thousands of fake Facebook accounts that were primed to polarize voters ahead of 2024

Meta said it removed 4789 Facebook accounts in China that targeted the United States before next year’s election.

1 day ago

A demonstrator in Tel Aviv holds a sign calling for a cease-fire in the Hamas-Israel war on Nov. 21...

Associated Press

Hamas releases a third group of hostages as part of truce, and says it will seek to extend the deal

The fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was back on track Sunday as the first American was released under a four-day truce.

6 days ago

Men look over the site of a deadly explosion at Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, Wednesday, Oct. 18, ...

Associated Press

New AP analysis of last month’s deadly Gaza hospital explosion rules out widely cited video

The Associated Press is publishing an updated visual analysis of the deadly Oct. 17 explosion at Gaza's Al-Ahli Hospital.

9 days ago

Peggy Simpson holds a photograph of law enforcement carrying Lee Harvey Oswald's gun through a hall...

Associated Press

JFK assassination remembered 60 years later by surviving witnesses to history, including AP reporter

Peggy Simpson is among the last surviving witnesses who are sharing their stories as the nation marks the 60th anniversary.

9 days ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, chairs the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, ...

Associated Press

Israeli Cabinet approves cease-fire with Hamas; deal includes release of 50 hostages

Israel’s Cabinet on Wednesday approved a cease-fire deal with the Hamas militant group that would bring a temporary halt to a devastating war.

10 days ago

Sponsored Articles

...

Dierdre Woodruff

Interest rates may have peaked. Should you buy a CD, high-yield savings account, or a fixed annuity?

Interest rates are the highest they’ve been in decades, and it looks like the Fed has paused hikes. This may be the best time to lock in rates for long-term, low-risk financial products like fixed annuities.

Follow @KTAR923...

West Hunsaker at Morris Hall supports Make-A-Wish Foundation in Arizona

KTAR's Community Spotlight this month focuses on Morris Hall and its commitment to supporting the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Arizona.

...

DAY & NIGHT AIR CONDITIONING, HEATING AND PLUMBING

Importance of AC maintenance after Arizona’s excruciating heat wave

An air conditioning unit in Phoenix is vital to living a comfortable life inside, away from triple-digit heat.

Macron: Turn out the lights, brace for Russian gas cutoff