PARIS, November 25. /TASS/. French President Emmanuel Macron rejected the suppositions that the discussed national military service reform may lead to sending French youth to the Ukrainian conflict zone.
"We need to strengthen the ties between the armed forces and the government," he said during an RTL radio broadcast. "We must dispel the notion that we will send our youth to Ukraine. There is no discussion about it," the French leader pointed out.
France canceled military conscription in the late 1990s under President Jacques Chirac.
Earlier, French Chief of the Defense Staff Fabien Mandon urged the French to prepare to "lose their children" in an apparent effort to contain Russia. He asserted that Paris has "all the knowledge, economic, and demographic power" to counter Moscow. TF1 TV channel noted that the general has long held this position and backs the country’s rearmament. Mandon previously said that the French army should be prepared to face off with Russia in three to four years.
Previously, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that European politicians' statements about a potential war with Russia are absurd. Speaking at the General Debate of the 80th UN General Assembly session, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov emphasized that Russia has never had, nor does it currently have, any intention of attacking NATO or the EU.