French military boss quits after clash with Macron
FRENCH leader Emmanuel Macron faced the biggest crisis of his young presidency yesterday following the resignation of the head of the armed forces, whom he had rebuked for criticising defence 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 ß850-million (R12.6-billion) from this year’s budget.
Macron, 39, slapped down the 60-year-old, five-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 said that if there was a difference of opinion, “it is the chief of the defence 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.
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 had hailed De Villiers for his remarkable service and promised to hike the defence budget again next year, government spokesman Christophe Castaner said.
De Villiers is seen as one of the finest officers of his generation. He is well-liked by the rank and file and said he believed it was his duty to inform politicians of his reservations.
The row has provoked a debate about whether Macron had humiliated his military chief or whether he had no choice but to exert his authority just two months into his presidency.
A former head of the French air force, General Vincent Lanata, told L’Express news weekly he was very shocked by Macron’s rant at De Villiers.
The crisis was exacerbated by its timing, coming in the week of the July 14 Bastille Day military parade, where US President Donald Trump was guest of honour.
The cuts to defence spending were seen by some in the military as a betrayal by Macron given his strong show of support for the military.
In his first foreign visit after taking office, he visited French troops engaged in counter-terrorism operations in the West African country of Mali.
The cuts are part of a ß4.5-billion (R67-billion) reduction in public spending that Macron’s centrist government has promised to bring down the budget deficit.