PARIS, June 2024 (Reuters) - France faces a threat to its sovereignty due to rising national debt, Amélie de Montchalin, head of the French Court of Audit, warned in an interview with Le Parisien. Interest payments on the debt could reach 80 billion euros by 2026, surpassing the national education budget of 65 billion euros, exceeding the defense budget by 40%, and being six times larger than the budget for the justice system. Experts have predicted a possible path toward sovereign default for France.