New Chief of Defence Staff’s Speech at the Mayors’ Congress: Mistake, Misstep or Performative Disruption?
OThe annual Mayors’ Congress, held from November 18 to 20, is traditionally a stage for technical discussions, each topic unfolding through an almost ritualized process. Yet this year from the very beginning, a single sentence disrupted this well-established routine. One sentence, five words, and an immediate shockwave: “We must accept losing our children.”
Uttered by General Fabien Mandon, the newly appointed Chief of the Defence Staff, the statement instantly became a political dividing line.
The first reaction came from the far left: Jean-Luc Mélenchon sharply condemned the phrase, while his supporters repeated tirelessly that “a Chief of the Defence Staff should never say that.” On the broader left, Fabien Roussel denounced “dangerous rhetoric,” and Ségolène Royal called it “unnecessarily dramatic.” On the far right, questions were less moral than political: “Who asked him to say that?” wondered Sebastien Chenu, a Rassemblement national member of Parliament, implying a signal from the highest levels of government.
Others, however, praised the bluntness. To them, Mandon was “forcing the country to face reality.” A sentence perceived as violent by some was seen by others as an antidote to what they consider collective denial of growing strategic threats.
As the controversy spread, Colonel Guillaume Vernet, spokesperson for the Defence Staff, intervened to “recode” the statement: “The armed forces are the children of the Nation.” In other words, he was referring not to all the nation’s children, but to its soldiers – something confirmed by a close reading of the disputed paragraph. Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon also stepped in, attempting to close the debate by clarifying that the general was referring to young soldiers killed in operations abroad, and to them alone. But it was too late: the first interpretation had already taken hold.
The “Mandon shock” now stands in line with other rhetorical turning points, like Emmanuel Macron’s “We are at war” during the Covid-19 crisis. This was not merely information; it was a narrative shift. General Mandon was not just issuing a warning: he was attempting to reshape the mental framework through which citizens and elected officials interpret the present moment, reminding them that national defense is not a technical sector but an existential matter.
Even the chosen setting, the Mayors’ Congress, was strategic, despite criticism. The implicit message was clear: national resilience cannot be declared from Paris; it must be built locally. The municipal level is a key link in the chain of national defense.
But high-intensity communication carries a risk: opening an interpretive space that gets out of control. By using words charged with symbolic weight – “children,” “loss,” “sacrifice”- General Mandon invited countless possible readings.
Despite later attempts to regain control of the narrative, something beyond the immediate uproar remains. General Mandon’s intervention creates a deep and lasting shift in the collective imagination. The Chief of the Defence Staff opens a breach that calls for budgetary, logistical, and societal decisions, advancing a simple yet explosive idea: to prepare the country requires profound transformation.
At a time when political leaders struggle to make themselves heard, Mandon challenges the habits of a civilian power, used to monopolizing the national narrative, and places defence squarely at its heart. His words redraw boundaries. And in doing so, he pushes us to reexamine the very purpose of public communication: should we constantly seek to smooth the French public with sterilized messaging? Or should we dare to speak essential truths clearly, firmly, lucidly, even at the risk of displeasing, since the world itself no longer asks permission to change?
Eric Giuily, President
Marguerite Pasquier, Account Director
Alexane Lirzin, Consultant