Moscow has become increasingly “aggressive” on the world stage, Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu has claimed
French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu speaks at an event in Paris on June 17, 2024. © Eric Beracassat / Gamma-Raph / Getty Images
Russia is currently France’s main adversary, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said in a recent interview with Le Point magazine.
In a conversation published on Wednesday, which marked the release of Lecornu’s new book, he spoke about security challenges that Paris faces today.
Asked which country or actor posed “the greatest threat to France,” Lecornu replied: “Apart from terrorist groups, clearly it is the Russian Federation.”
He claimed that Moscow has been “even more aggressive” this year than it was in 2022 and 2023. Russia poses a threat “not only to our interests in Africa, but also directly to our Armed Forces,” the minister said, adding that “the Russian air traffic control has threatened to shoot down a French Rafale patrol.”
Lecornu went on to accuse Russia of “waging an information war” and “militarizing new environments, including the seabed and cyberspace.”
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Although the French defense chief did not cite specific incidents, both Russia and NATO have accused each other of dangerous aerial maneuvers. In March, the Russian Defense Ministry said its jets had escorted two French Rafale warplanes that were flying over the Black Sea, close to the Russian border.
Moscow has repeatedly stressed that the delivery of weapons to Ukraine by Paris risks a dangerous escalation. In January, Russia summoned the French envoy over the presence of “French mercenaries” in Ukraine. While the French government acknowledged that its citizens were participating in the conflict, it denied facilitating their arrival on the battlefield.
Commenting on Paris’ hostile stance, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated in May that President Emmanuel Macron was “breathing” Russophobia and claimed that the French leader was trying to use belligerent rhetoric to elevate his country’s position on the world stage.