Simple coincidence or imminent threat? A few days after the publicationof an open letter signed by generals which appeared In French weekly Valeurs Actuelles, and supported by RN leader Marine Le Pen, sixteen high-ranking military men spoke up once again. The sixteen soldiers are known to be part of the Cercle de Réflexion Interarmées (CRI), itself a descendant of a previous group Les sentinelles de l’Agora.
This alert takes the form of a 21-page document, published on April 14. It is the result of “responsible and impartial” work according to one of the signatories. The group is composed mainly of generals. Two of the signatories moreover took part in both the controversial forum of the generals and in this new group of high-ranking officers even if they ruled out any direct link between the two initiatives.
However, their observation remains edifying: “A hybrid war has been declared against us, it is multifaceted and will end at best with a civil war, or at worst with a cruel defeat without a future,” reported our colleagues from French weekly Journal du dimanche (JDD).
This conflict has already started, underlined the 21-page document. “A hybrid war has begun against Europe and France, and we must forge the psychological, sociological, moral, educational, legal and penal weapons to lead it and win it.” To remedy this, the document intended for parliamentary groups proposed a “multidimensional strategy” to fight against the forfeiture which threatens the country. It remains to be seen what impact this mobilization of generals will have on public opinion as the presidential election draws near.
France has been shaken up by violence involving minors and immigrants and repeated clashes with law enforcement in immigrant neighbourhoods, is reflected in public opinion. As revealed by the latest Fiducial-Odoxa security barometer revealed by French daily Le Figaro, no less than 84 percent of French people fear that the problems affecting the new generation will translate into an increase in delinquency and insecurity.