US Vice President JD Vance on Saturday (local time) blamed lenient immigration policies championed in the name of diversity and compassion for the violence that erupted during protests in France.
Vance posted a video on X showing the city hall of Limoges, a small city in southwestern France, engulfed in flames after being attacked by demonstrators.
"Western progressives imported the third world into France and other countries in the name of diversity and compassion," Vance said. "They ignored the fundamental questions of assimilation and social compatibility. They were warned this would happen and they didn't listen."
He added that he prays "the beautiful country of France and its wonderful people stop this madness before more landmarks burn."
Vance also urged Americans to pay close attention to the unrest. "This is the future that Democratic lawmakers are pursuing for America," he said.
Large-scale protests and rallies have continued for four weeks in France, sparked by high school students demanding improvements to deteriorating school conditions. Clashes between police and demonstrators have broken out, and some areas have seen arson and looting.
Trump: 'massive, out-of-control immigration'
Donald Trump had also attributed the large-scale student protests in France to immigration.
On Oct. 6 (local time), Trump wrote on Truth Social that "what is happening in France is nothing less than massive, out-of-control immigration" and that "this is not about schools."
He added, "This is about Islam trying to take over a country that was once great."
Trump, who has pursued anti-immigration policies in the United States, has repeatedly argued that France, along with Britain, Germany, Spain and other European nations, indiscriminately accepted migrants from the Middle East and Africa.
Trump had also weighed in on a migrant incursion in Ceuta, a Spanish territory bordering North Africa, last July, describing it as "hundreds of thousands of people invading a country" and blaming lax border and immigration policies.
However, AFP analyzed that Trump's remarks linking the French protests to immigration were an attempt to rally the global right ahead of US midterm elections.
Meanwhile, the protests that began as demonstrations against poor school conditions show signs of spreading further.
The unrest originating in France also appears to be crossing borders, with similar movements emerging in neighboring countries including Italy, Belgium, Spain and Portugal.
yul@heraldcorp.com
