Pierre Le Jolis De Villiers de Saintignon, Général d'armée of the French on Wednesday resigned his appointment after an altercation with French President, Emmanuel Macron over Defense Budget cut.
The former Military Chief who made the disclosure in a statement issued in Paris stated that he had tried to keep the Military at its best, in the face of emerging threats to national security but maintained that such effort was no longer tenable given the huge budgetary cut initiated by the new president
"In the current circumstances I see myself as no longer able to guarantee the robust defense force I believe is necessary to guarantee the protection of France and the French people, today and tomorrow, and to sustain the aims of our country," he said.
Pierre Villiers and President Macron had clashed recently after the former, while appearing before parliamentarians, used strong language to protest the 850 million euro defense budget cut initiated by President Macron as part of his efforts to rein in state spending.
According to Reuters, President Macron had retorted that "I have made commitments. I am your boss." Irked by the development, De Villieres submitted his resignation. He was said to have lamented that the proposed budgetary provision was inadequate since France is currently battling Islamist insurgency in some parts of Africa coupled with the threat of ISIS in home front.
To avoid a vacuum, President Macron has appointed General Francois Lecointre as De Villiers' replacement.
