Former French President Francois Hollande believes that the situation in his country represents an element of “insecurity” for Europe
Francois Hollande, Photo: Thibaud MORITZ / AFP / Profimedia
“The fragility of France is an additional element of insecurity for Europe”, is the opinion of the former president of the Republic, Francois Hollande, who sounds the alarm especially on the consequences of a budget failure for the financing of defense, writes the France Presse agency.
In an interview given to the daily newspaper Le Monde regarding the war in Ukraine and US President Donald Trump's plan to end the conflict, the former French president (2012-2017) was also asked about the political situation in France, reports Agerpres.
“In this context, the fragility of France is an additional element of insecurity for Europe”, he said, appreciating that if she “wants to participate in rearmament, she must have a defense budget voted within the finance law”, that is, in the state budget for 2026.
On the night of Friday to Saturday, French deputies almost unanimously rejected this budget in a first reading in a vote unprecedented for decades and which does not bode well for its adoption before the end of the year.
However, if the adoption of a new budget fails in the parliament and if the government resorts to a “special law” to ensure the continuity of the state, “the expenses of the previous year will be taken into account, and the 6 billion euros provided for improving our defense capacity will not be there”, warned the former socialist president.
“That's why Trump and Putin are pressuring the extreme right in Europe to weaken and neutralize us”
Returned to the Correze (south-west) deputy, Francois Hollande makes a connection between “the state of our democracy”, “our defense force and the credibility of our security”. “It is the reason why Trump and Putin are pushing the extreme right in Europe to weaken and neutralize us,” he added.
Regarding Donald Trump's plan, Francois Hollande believes that in its current version it amounts to a “surrender of Ukraine”, but also to “Europe coming under the tutelage of a Russian-American condominium”.
Regretting the absence of European leadership, he also invites the Europeans “to correct the plan if it is still amendable” and “to say that they will continue to deliver weapons as much as possible” to Ukraine.
Welcomed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, the American plan resumes several key demands of Moscow: that Ukraine cede territories to it, accept the reduction of the size of its army and give up the idea of joining NATO. It also provides for the promise of Western security guarantees to Kiev to prevent any new Russian attack.
