France must not be 'weak' against Russia 'threat': Macron

Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday thatFrancemust not be weak faced with the threat from Russia, while emphasising it had no inten...

Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday that France must not be "weak" faced with the threat from Russia, while emphasising it had no intention of "sending our young people" to fight in the Ukraine war.

"We would be wrong to show weakness in the face of this threat. If we want to protect ourselves, we French -- which is my sole concern -- we must demonstrate that we are not weak against the power that threatens us the most," he told RTL radio in an interview.

Macron is expected to make an announcement later this week on a voluntary form of military service, after France scrapped compulsory service in 1997.

He told RTL he would be announcing a "transformation of national service into a new form" on Thursday, but did not provide further details.

A source with knowledge of the matter, speaking anonymously because not allowed to speak to the press, has told AFP that the plan is for 2,000 to 3,000 people to be trained up in the first year, aiming to increase those signing up over time to 50,000 per year.