“Ukraine has every right to retaliate”, believes the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu

While Emmanuel Macron authorized kyiv to use French weapons to strike Russia, the Minister of the Armed Forces assures that this is simply a question of respecting the laws of war.

“Ukraine has every right to retaliate”, estimates Friday May 31 on franceinfo, the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu. So, as “the Americans, the British”France gives a “diplomatic permission” in kyiv to use French weapons since it involves “self-defense”.

The President of the United States, Joe Biden, who has so far refused to do so, authorized Ukraine to use American weapons to strike targets on Russian soil to defend Kharkiv. The United Kingdom also gave the green light. In France also, “we support politically” these strikes, declares Sébastien Lecornu who adds that he “There is nothing new in international law.”

“For several weeks, Russia has intensified its strikes from military infrastructures on its own soil.” However, according to the law of war, “an attacked country can strike in response to centers of military aggression against its territory”, explains the French Minister of the Armed Forces. So, this “diplomatic permission” is only an application of law, according to Sébastien Lecornu. A country in self-defense can use weapons supplied by another country. “We give weapons to a country to defend itself”he argues. “It is Russia which is changing its way of waging war and in particular by retreating behind its border. So it is Russia which has also carried this risk of seeing its own territory struck. The roles must not be reversed. “adds the minister.

Like Washington, Paris imposes a framework on kyiv, underlines Sébastien Lecornu. “We must allow them to neutralize the military sites from which the missiles are fired, and basically, the military sites from which Ukraine is attacked”declared Emmanuel Macron, during a press conference Tuesday May 28 in Germany. “To knowledge” of the French Minister of the Armed Forces, “No” Ukraine has not yet used French weapons to strike Russian territory.

Sébastien Lecornu accuses the RN deputy, Marine Le Pen, of taking over the “Kremlin narrative”. The president of the National Rally group in the National Assembly accused Emmanuel Macron of wanting to enter “right into the war with Russia”. For the French Minister of the Armed Forces, “we must not give in to the narrative” from Moscow, “relayed here and there by extremes in different countries”. Then, Sébastien Lecornu wants to “reiterate that these weapons given to Ukraine allow Ukraine to defend itself and this does not make France a co-belligerent power”.