France will increase its military spending by an additional €6.5 billion over the next two years amid rising global threats. French President Emmanuel Macron made the announcement on Sunday.
Speaking in his traditional Bastille Day address to military leaders at the Hotel de Brienne in Paris, Macron said France aims to reach an annual defence budget of €64 billion by 2027 — double the €32 billion spent annually in 2017 when he first took office.
Calling the increase a “new and historic effort,” Macron said it is “proportionate, credible and essential” to meet today’s security challenges.
The president urged intensified efforts to protect Europe, citing threats including Russia’s war in Ukraine, terrorism, online attacks, and misinformation campaigns targeting young people.
“Since 1945, freedom has never been so threatened, and never so seriously,” Macron said. “To be free in this world we must be feared. To be feared we must be powerful.”
Despite efforts to reduce public debt, Macron insisted France can find the resources to boost defence spending. The plan has support from conservative and far-right parties, while some on the left criticise it for risking social welfare gains.
Macron also ordered France’s military and defence officials to begin a “strategic dialogue” with European partners on the role of France’s nuclear arsenal in Europe’s security. France recently agreed with Britain to strengthen cooperation on nuclear issues amid growing Russian threats.
Rescue operations are underway on Mount Everest's eastern Tibetan slope after a powerful blizzard trapped nearly 1,000 trekkers in high-altitude camps...
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited the Choe Hyon naval destroyer during a military exhibition on Sunday, according to state media outlet KCNA....
U.S President Trump reports swift progress in Gaza peace talks, with the first phase expected to conclude this week. Trump announced on Sunday that ne...
A delegation of Hamas officials, led by Khalil al-Hayya, arrived in Egypt on Sunday to engage in indirect negotiations with Israeli representatives....
U.S. forces struck yet another vessel off Venezuela’s coast on Saturday evening, President Donald Trump said Sunday, alleging it was carrying illici...
U.S President Trump reports swift progress in Gaza peace talks, with the first phase expected to conclude this week. Trump announced on Sunday that negotiations aimed at ending the Gaza conflict and securing the release of hostages held by Hamas are advancing rapidly.
A delegation of Hamas officials, led by Khalil al-Hayya, arrived in Egypt on Sunday to engage in indirect negotiations with Israeli representatives.
In a Sunday phone call, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil said his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov pledged “full support and solidarity” to Caracas following U.S. strikes on vessels near Venezuela.
Southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region is harnessing its vast wind and solar potential on the “roof of the world” to drive sustainable green development.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least eight people have died and more than 90 others were injured following a catastrophic gas tanker explosion on a major highway in Mexico City’s Iztapalapa district on Wednesday, authorities confirmed.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on 13 September with no tsunami threat, coming just weeks after the region endured a devastating 8.8-magnitude quake — the strongest since 1952.
Authorities in California have identified the dismembered body discovered in a Tesla registered to singer D4vd as 15-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who had been missing from Lake Elsinore since April 2024.
Typhoon Matmo intensified as it approached southern China, prompting authorities to evacuate approximately 347,000 residents across Guangdong and Hainan provinces.
A devastating building collapse at the Al Khoziny Islamic boarding school in Sidoarjo, East Java, Indonesia, has resulted in at least 40 confirmed deaths, with 23 students still missing under the rubble.
A tragic hunting accident in Iowa resulted in the death of 17-year-old Carson Ryan, who was mistakenly identified as a squirrel by a member of his hunting party and fatally shot in the back of the head.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the death toll in Gaza has now reached 67,139 amid continuing Israeli airstrikes and military operations. In the past 24 hours alone, officials said 65 bodies were brought to hospitals and 153 people were wounded.
Rescue operations are underway on Mount Everest's eastern Tibetan slope after a powerful blizzard trapped nearly 1,000 trekkers in high-altitude camps.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment