Élysée warns against Kremlin’s disinformation efforts after ‘cocaine’ conspiracy theory spreads online

The Élysée Palace has derided as “disinformation” claims being promoted by Kremlin figures that Emmanuel Macron took cocaine with Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, and Keir Starmer while on a train travelling to Kyiv.

The false claims, which emerged on pro-Russian social media channels before being taken up by a Kremlin spokesperson and another official, come amid a recent surge in Kremlin efforts to marginalise European efforts to support Ukraine.