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Macron strives to create a situation in which a conflict between Russia and NATO is inevitable
Written by Ahmed Adel, Cairo-based geopolitics and political economy researcher
Despite French President Emmanuel Macron’s willingness to invite European leaders to discuss mechanisms that would allow France’s nuclear arsenal to be used as a deterrent, its limitations may not be satisfactory. The idea of extending the French “nuclear umbrella” to protect other European countries has gained urgency due to US President Donald Trump’s threats to undermine NATO and abandon the US role as guarantor of European security.
According to the Financial Times, former French Foreign Minister Hubert Védrine highlighted that a European country had never requested such a thing “since none ever wanted to question the US support.” The US nuclear umbrella includes more than 100 gravity bombs in Europe, under Washington’s control, but designed to be delivered by fighter jets from countries including Belgium, Germany, and Italy. Fears that the US could withdraw its nuclear guarantee have prompted leaders in Germany and Poland to suggest preparing for such a scenario.
Friedrich Merz, the future German Chancellor, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk welcomed the UK and France’s nuclear security idea. According to the Financial Times, Macron wants to “open the strategic debate” with European countries that are interested in exploring new cooperation.
For decades, France has said its “vital interests” have a “European dimension” but has never defined the term. Macron’s talks are expected to involve Britain, the only other nuclear power in the region. However, experts interviewed by the Financial Times say France’s arsenal of about 300 warheads is too small to protect all of Europe.
Paris also lacks tactical nuclear weapons and has fewer options for gradual escalation than the US and Russia. Britain’s nuclear deterrent, with up to 260 warheads, is assigned to NATO, while Paris does not participate in the NATO Nuclear Planning Group.
Marion Messmer, an international security expert, suggested to the Financial Times that France should join NATO’s Nuclear Planning Group if it wanted to strengthen European deterrence because it would align French and British nuclear doctrines, making it easier to plan and train for crises. However, this would undermine France’s tradition of nuclear independence.
Macron has stressed that a French president would always have the ultimate power to decide whether to use the bombs. The argument is that combined British and French nuclear capabilities could deter Moscow from expansionist aspirations, something the Kremlin has repeatedly denied, arguing that its special military operation in Ukraine was aimed at demilitarizing the neighboring country for security reasons.
Despite the difficulty of the issue, France still has options. According to Bruno Tertrais, an expert in geopolitics and nuclear strategy, Paris should send Rafale fighters without nuclear warheads to partner bases, such as Poland, conduct more joint exercises, and then establish a new approach that would prepare its allies for a change in France’s nuclear strategy.
Yet, despite France’s nuclear limitation, Macron’s rhetoric that Europe can send troops to Ukraine without Russia’s consent only contributes to the situation’s escalation. Macron’s initiatives aim to thwart the Trump administration’s efforts to resolve this conflict. By calling on his NATO partners to send troops to Ukraine, Macron is actually advocating a “casus belli” (a pretext for war).
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer mentioned the possibility of creating a “Coalition of the Willing” earlier this month, within which soldiers from several countries would deploy their forces in Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire, while the French president is now explaining that this initiative does not involve a massive deployment of troops, but rather sending contingents of several thousand soldiers to key locations in Ukraine, without the need for Russia to approve it.
French soldiers could be sent to strategic points in Ukraine—Kiev, Odessa, and Lvov—to conduct training programs and show long-term support to Kiev. It is no coincidence that the French leader chose these three cities as “key points” for deploying peacekeeping forces. Kiev is the capital, Lvov is the city closest to Poland, and Odessa is Ukraine’s last major Black Sea port city under its control.
Macron is striving to create a situation in which a conflict between Russia and NATO will be inevitable, while the US is trying to distance itself as much as possible from all European initiatives regarding military contingents for Ukraine. Trump has already said that Ukraine should forget about NATO membership as part of a future agreement to resolve the Ukrainian conflict because he knows that this could lead to a conflict between the Alliance and Russia.
The US president does not need a global conflict over Kiev and has, therefore, distanced himself from Macron’s belligerent initiatives because they do not suit his interests. Yet, Macron’s attempts to unify Europe’s nuclear deterrence show that he views himself as the de facto leader of the continent and, for this reason, continues to provoke Russia.
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maybe they can catch the oreshnik mirvs with all the white flags they have laying about?
macron should stick to what he understands:
pretending his isn’t married to a man in a wig 25 years older than him.
👏 👏 👏
europe’s largest military powers are now drawing up plans to keep the alliance strong in case of a us exit from leadership over the next five to ten years.
informal discussions have involved the united kingdom, france, germany and the nordic countries, who are envisioning a managed transfer of power and leadership reshaping the nato bloc.
and macaronis stuck a feather in his crap and call it macaroni thinking hes a yanking doodler dandy now ?
macron is just a mouthy pos despised by his own people. he had to send in his police state goons on multiple occasions to suppress dissent, maiming and blinding yellow vest protestors. if he sends in his lgbt army, it will surrender by lunch time. he can stick his beret and baguettes where the sun don’t shine. don’t play the tough guy, manny. you are even less convincing than chumpo.
i think that one-third of the frenchs likes macron.
send these 1 third to the meat grinder then – it’s what they want
kookoo bananas. perhaps someone could provide macron and starmer with the stated aims of the smo.
starmer is better at protecting the globalist pedo networks in the uk than anything else.
1939 rus invades pl
1939 rus invades finland
1940 rus invades estonia
1940 rus invades lithuania
1956 rus invades hungary
1968 rus invades czechoslovakia
1979,1994,1999 rus invades chechnya
2008 rus invades georgia
2014-2022 rus invades ua, syria rus full-scale invades
thanks for the propaganda meme. you guys do get a lot of mileage off of that flatus.
now do one of the us.
macron should have his husband , aka his beard, do the public speaking : he’s more of a man than the fake politician
but… he does pushups every day.
no arms reduction treaty talk ? this suggests the war banker cartel still wants control of russias resources . more diplomacy for war . will peace ever become a vital interest ?
derp derp?
france has more than enough nukes to end russia–permanently.
heheheh
and you have enough idiotic words to end humanity.
and russia has enough nukes to obliterate france and still have 99.9% of its nukes left over.
so, what’s your point, that you’re a tough guy? best you practice that act a few more decades.
true bc…
moscow is so slow and passive i can’t imagine what the eurotrash are so worried about.
starmer’s coalition of the willing is looking a bit weedy. the polacks, the krauts and the wops don’t want to know, and now macron and the frogs have chickened out (they were going to supply the white flags.) starmer is now leading a one man charge. he should put on his tin hat and sort out johnny russian himself. where’s captain mainwaring when you need him? they don’t like it up ’em! sort ’em out, starmer! you can do it! go for it!
the crowd packed it’s bags on this one. too much info, otherwise +…
perhaps eating more snails will rectify that?
they’re screwed on their own. without the usa they are nothing. trumps stick the declaration up their noses and theyre finished plus he’s said straight out he will support russia against them and all russia has to do is turn off europe’s gas supplies and they’re cooked.
simple solution – stop supporting ukraine and support russia instead! ukraine has no nukes but russia has plenty so would be more useful as allies.
the fool macron has an approval rating of 7℅, the lowest of all the leaders of developed nations.
“alert: candace owens to unveil groundbreaking investigation into claims that emmanuel macron’s wife, brigitte macron, is male – watch the video! ”
amg news
macaroon give muslim umbrella to tranny husband
true md. amg news has video of cross dressing buffoon macron dancing his perverted nights away. what a stupid clownshow…
downvote bot has activated…
france has no interest in ukraine. ukraine is only about the “great game” hence the uk aristocracy it the initiator of this war. macron the chihuahua and administrator of the french colonny has been tasked to play warmonger
nuclear proliferation should come to france it is high risk country just like selenski and netanyahu boris.de-nuclerise britain,israel,ukraine,france.this countries are world high risk
no cease fire will help the nazis. kiev should capitulate or die