President Emmanuel Macron will update France’s nuclear doctrine on Monday, ruling out shared European control while outlining what Paris can offer allies worried about the reliability of the U.S. nuclear umbrella under President Donald Trump, APA reports, citing Reuters.
Although France and Britain are both nuclear powers, most European countries rely primarily on the United States for deterring any potential adversaries — a decades-old pillar of transatlantic security.
However, European officials privately question how far France’s arsenal can stretch to protect the continent. Concerns include cost-sharing, the issue of who would control launch decisions, and whether focusing on nuclear forces risks crowding out urgently needed investment in conventional capabilities.
French officials say they want Europeans to better understand what France's doctrine can — and cannot — provide. But Paris is adamant that funding its deterrent remains solely a French responsibility to ensure exclusive national control.
Speaking at France’s nuclear submarine base in Brittany, Macron will deliver the customary once-per-presidential-term update on the nuclear doctrine.
France's stance, under the doctrine, aims to maintain a minimal but credible arsenal designed to impose losses severe enough to deter any first strike.
French officials offered no details ahead of Macron's speech but said the strategic landscape has shifted dramatically since his last one in 2020, citing Russia's growing arsenal and increased nuclear rhetoric since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
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