France to Boost Nuclear Arsenal

“France will expand its nuclear arsenal and will potentially allow European partners to host its aircraft on nuclear deterrence ‌missions, President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday, signalling a major doctrine change for France and the continent,” Reuters reports.

“Though France and Britain are both nuclear powers, most European countries have relied primarily on the United States for deterring any potential adversaries — a decades-old pillar of transatlantic security.”

“But Trump’s rapprochement with Russia on the Ukraine ​war and his harsher posture towards traditional allies have rattled European governments, and some countries have expressed interest in how Paris ​could protect them by extending its nuclear umbrella.”