MOSCOW, November 6. /TASS/. The United States’ military assistance to Europe looks more like a gripper rather than an instrument for protection, a senior Russian lawmaker said on Tuesday.

In an interview with France’s Europe 1 radio station earlier on Tuesday, Macron said that Europe needs a "true European army" to protect itself from China, Russia and the United States. "We need a Europe which defends itself better alone, without just depending on the United States, in a more sovereign manner," he said.

"The initiative to create a joint EU army independent from the US’ dominance is a kind of alarm bell signaling that the United States’ auspices is no longer a shield for the Europeans but a gripper tightening up more and more year after year," Viktor Bondarev, chairman of the defense and security committee of Russia’s Federation Council upper parliament house, told journalists.

"This dependence is burdensome not only to France, but also to Germany and other European nations," he said, adding that their resistance is gradually growing stronger.

"The Europeans continue to buy weapons from the United States even when they don’t want to. But the American never give them a say in a bid to ensure the dollar’s liquidity," he noted.

In this context, the Russian senator noted that Russia’s defense sector is totally independent. "We manufacture all the weapons domestically, using no imported technologies, components or products. Based on this criteria, we are far ahead of the European Union and the rest of the world, including the United States," while the NATO countries are interdependent, he stressed. "And the bloc’s leader, the United States, is no exception, although, to be fair, it should be noted that other countries of the alliance are dependent on it more," he added.

Having state-of-the-art weapons of domestic manufacture, Russia nevertheless is not seeking to control any nations it offers support to, that is why "both nations that are weaker in military terms and those on a par, such as China," want allied relations with Russia, Bondarev stressed.