The head of France’s armed forces has resigned after clashing with President Emmanuel Macron over proposed budget cuts.
In a statement, Pierre de Villiers said he no longer felt able to command the type of army “that I think is necessary to guarantee the protection of France and the French people”.
The military chief clashed with Mr Macron last week after telling a parliamentary committee he would not allow the armed forces to be “screwed” by €850m (£752m) worth of planned cuts.
He said: “I may be stupid, but I know when I’m being had.”
Gen de Villiers later posted a statement on Facebook in which he did not name Mr Macron but said “no-one deserves to be blindly followed”.
On Friday, the President responded by telling military leaders: “I am your leader.”
“For me it is undignified to wash dirty linen in public,” he said in a public address. “I need no pressure, no comment.”
Source: Sky News
