French military chief quits after row with Macron

French leader Emmanuel Macron faced the biggest crisis of his young presidency on Wednesday following the resignation of the head of the armed forces, whom he had rebuked for criticizing defense spending cuts.

The row between Macron and General Pierre de Villiers blew up last week when the chief of staff told a parliamentary committee he would not allow the armed forces to be “screwed” by the government’s plans to slash 850 million euros ($ 980 million) from this year’s budget.

Macron, 39, slapped down the 60- year- old fi ve- star general, telling army top brass at their annual summer party “I am the boss” and that he deeply regretted that the budget dispute had been dragged into the “public sphere.”

In a newspaper interview at the weekend, Macron added that if there was a diff erence of opinion, “It is the chief of the defense staff who will change his position.”

De Villiers, who had been in the job for three years, said he felt he had no choice but to stand down.

“I no longer feel able to ensure the sustainability of the model of the armed forces that I think is necessary to guarantee the protection of France and the French people,” he said in a statement.

Macron named 55- year- old General Francois Lecointre, currently the top military adviser to the prime minister, as his replacement.

At a weekly cabinet meeting, the president hailed De Villiers for his “remarkable service” and promised to hike the defense budget again in 2018, government spokesman Christophe Castaner said.

De Villiers is seen as one of the fi nest offi cers of his generation.

He is well- liked by the rank and fi le and said he believed it was his duty to inform politicians of his “reservations.”

In a Facebook “letter to a young recruit” last week he appeared to take aim at Macron, saying, “As everyone has their shortcomings, no one should be blindly followed.”