Europe on high alert after suspected Moscow-linked arson and sabotage
GuardianMAY 2024
French Riviera Hit by Second Power Outage in Two Days
Above: A municipal police officer directs traffic as traffic lights no longer function after a power outage struck Southwestern France, on the final day of the 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 24, 2025. Image copyright: Sameer al-Doumy/Contributor/AFP via Getty Images
The Spin
Narrative A
These coordinated attacks on critical infrastructure represent a serious threat to public safety and national security that demands immediate action. The deliberate targeting of electrical facilities during major cultural events like the Cannes Film Festival shows a calculated effort to cause maximum disruption and endanger lives by knocking out traffic lights, emergency services, and vital infrastructure. French authorities are right to treat these as terrorist acts that require relentless pursuit of the perpetrators and enhanced security measures around all strategic sites.
Narrative B
While anarchist groups may have taken credit for these attacks, Russia has also been accused of similar acts of sabotage and arson across the continent. The fact that such vital infrastructure could be damaged at such a high-profile event is a bad sign, and Europe must strengthen all of its frontiers against potential threats that may be bigger in scale than a few radical activists. Europe needs to take the prospect of state-sponsored attacks from Russia meant to destabilize the free world more seriously.