War on protests

“Urban guerilla warfare” was how the French interior minister described the weekend anti-airport street protest in the French city of Nantes.

But the French government was among the foremost in backing the street protest in Kiev in Ukraine. While it was OK to employ water cannon in Nantes it was not OK for the authorities in Kiev to do likewise.

Yet there was no evidence of armed attacks by protesters in Nantes while in Kiev Molotov cocktails were being thrown at police constantly.

TV pictures showed policemen in Kiev ablaze because of these improvised missiles.

Nor was there a chirp from any other Western government in support of the protest in Nantes, which by all accounts was a peaceful event until the police reacted heavy-handedly.

Such contrast by Western governments in how they view events in different countries does them no credit and undermines any credence and integrity they might hope to benefit from in international affairs.

Ian Johnstone

Forman Drive

Peterhead