Violence in France: Vladimir Putin’s envoy calls it the West’s “suicide”

On October 17, 2026, a protest against the cost of living turned violent in France: a town hall was set on fire in Limoges, a municipal police station was vandalized in Marseille, and Bordeaux’s chamber of commerce was attacked. Responding to videos of the unrest posted online, Kirill Dmitriev, Vladimir Putin’s envoy for international economic cooperation, called it on X the “suicide of Western civilization” caused by “migration chaos.” He also criticized Western policies on migration and energy, as well as what he described as incitement to war. Dmitriev, head of Russia’s Direct Investment Fund and a participant in Moscow-Washington discussions on Ukraine, had made similar remarks earlier in October about student protests in Paris.