Emmanuel Macron estimated Thursday that Xenia Fedorova, former general director of the French-language Russia Today channel, was at the service of Russian “state propaganda”. Centrist MEPs are calling for sanctions against the woman she describes as a “notorious Russian propagandist”.
Published on: 06/04/2026 - 5:39 p.m. Modified on: 06/04/2026 - 5:46 p.m.
Visiting Montenegro, French President Emmanuel Macron accused, Thursday June 4, Xenia Fedorova of being at the service of Russian “state propaganda” in 2017 and that “things had not changed” since. The Russian columnist has become known in several French media for her very favorable comments towards the Kremlin.
“I refer you to what I said in Versailles in June 2017 quite clearly, in the presence of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, in front of a person who was at the time allegedly in charge of a media outlet, but who was a state propaganda agency,” declared the French head of state in reference to the former director of the news channel RT France (Russia Today), banned in the European Union in 2022 in the wake of the Russian invasion in Ukraine.
“Things have not changed. I think the same thing,” he added alongside President Jakov Milatovic, during a visit to Montenegro focused in particular on cooperation in the fight against foreign interference.
Also read Who is Xenia Fedorova, accused of being the voice of the Kremlin in the Bolloré media?
Xenia Fedorova, who regularly defends the Kremlin's positions in the various media of the French conservative billionaire Vincent Bolloré, saw her residence permit renewed in France in 2024, which sparked numerous reactions.
“It is not the president, through a sovereign decision, who calls into question the residence permits or who gives them. This is a good thing. There are rules and procedures in our country. They must be respected,” explained Emmanuel Macron.
The French Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nuñez, had already assured that there had been no "intervention" from the government during the extension to 2024 of his residence permit.
“Notorious Russian propagandist”
Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot had already described the columnist as a “certified propagandist, who serves as a relay for Kremlin disinformation”.
MEPs from the centrist Renew group have since called on the EU to take sanctions against Xenia Fedorova, a "notorious Russian propagandist", guilty, according to them, of disseminating "grossly manipulative narratives about the war in Ukraine and against the EU". French MEP Nathalie Loiseau is at the origin of this initiative from the centrist group.
The decision to impose sanctions rests with the 27 EU member states, on a proposal from the European Commission. Since October 2024, the European Union can take sanctions against personalities or entities responsible for using “coordinated disinformation and manipulation of information”.
Also read: The ban on Russian media by the EU, “a dangerous precedent”
Last week, government spokesperson Maud Bregeon pointed out the “very serious comments” of Xenia Fedorova, which “completely reverse the burden of proof on the responsibilities between Russia and Ukraine”. The French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, also described her as a pro-Putin “propagandist”.
Edouard Philippe, former Prime Minister of Emmanuel Macron and candidate for the 2027 presidential election, judged that "to relay Russia's positions to Paris is to criticize France's position".
As for Raphaël Glucksmann (left), boss of Place publique and possible presidential candidate, he judged for his part that it was necessary to "take the microphone away", considering that she was a "Russian agent" in the service of a regime which "directly threatens" Europe.
With AFP
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