Emanuel Macron announced today that he will give a speech “at the beginning of 2026 “on France’s nuclear doctrine that is “being updated”, in an interview with the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
“I am currently working on updating our doctrine, and I wish to continue to deepen our strategic dialogue with the Europeans who want it. There is, in any case, a European dimension since 1962,” said the French president, whose country is the only one in Europe, along with the United Kingdom, to have a nuclear bomb.
The possibility that other European countries could benefit from the French nuclear deterrent has been persistently raised in recent months against fears that they can no longer count on the American umbrella. Friedrich Murch, in particular, has called for such a development to be discussed.
Emmanuel Macron is expected to travel to Germany’s Saarbrücken the day after tomorrow, Friday, for German Unity Day, 35 years after reunification, at the invitation of his counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier, also attended by Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
On this occasion, he refers once again, in this interview, to the importance of the Franco-German pair and the common understanding with the head of the conservative government.
Responding to a question about the possibility of shooting down a Russian fighter jet that would enter European airspace without permission, Emmanuel Macron invokes “the doctrine of strategic ambiguity.”
“I can tell you that nothing is ruled out” because “we have to keep (Russian President Vladimir) Putin in uncertainty,” he said.
Last week, he said NATO should “step up a notch” in the event of “new Russian provocations”, adding: “We are not going to open fire.”
This time, he seems to be regaining his composure to explain that the West “has reiterated on numerous occasions to Moscow” that they will not show “weakness.”
The French president appears very aggressive towards Russia, which is accused of interference.
“We will be naive if we do not recognize that the Russian secret army is spreading in our democracies. It consists of these little anonymous warriors called digital bots. They are manipulating democracy in France, in Germany, and in Europe,” he warned.
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