France to launch a new military service plan for its citizens

A heated debate erupted in France this week after French Chief of Defence Staff General Fabien Mandon declared that the country must be “ready to accept the loss of its children.”

- Roshan Bourget

His remark, made in front of the Congress of Mayors of France, albeit intended to shake the French from their reverie about the security threats looming over Europe, stirred a heated national controversy.

The opposition, from the left and right wing, pounced on the opportunity to rip General Mandon’s words apart. They accused him of spreading “unbearable warmongering.” The centrist government spokesperson Maud Brégeon tried to bring calm to the chaos, clarifying that “our children will not go and die in Ukraine” and stressed that France maintains a professional army. The defence chief, she explained, was only speaking symbolically about France's young soldiers, “the children of the nation,” who already serve in uniform and are willing to die for France.