Overview
- President Emmanuel Macron ordered an increase in France’s nuclear warheads, the first expansion since at least 1992, and said Paris will stop publishing stockpile figures.
- France will allow temporary basing of nuclear‑armed aircraft in eight partner nations — the UK, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Sweden and Denmark — under a new “advanced” or “forward” deterrence framework.
- France and Germany set up a high‑level nuclear steering group and plan concrete steps this year, including conventional German participation in French nuclear exercises and joint visits to strategic sites.
- Paris underscored exclusive national command of its arsenal, ruled out shared launch authority or placing French bombs on foreign aircraft, and invited partners to join exercises and contribute conventional forces.
- Allied governments cast the plan as complementary to NATO’s deterrent, while disarmament advocates, including ICAN, criticized the move over costs, credibility questions and arms‑control implications.