Moscow, India, others rally behind Afghanistan amidst Bagram airbase tussle
The 7th Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan has concluded in Russia with participants issuing a joint statement heavily hinting at a joint oppo...
French President Emmanuel Macron has signaled that France is open to extending its nuclear deterrent to European allies, warning that Russia now poses a direct threat to the continent.
In a televised address, Macron outlined plans to increase defence spending while urging Europe to prepare for a world where U.S. security guarantees may no longer be reliable.
France and Britain are Europe’s only nuclear-armed nations, with France’s deterrent consisting of Rafale fighter jets and nuclear submarines capable of launching strikes at any time on presidential orders.
Macron said that while the final decision on nuclear weapons would remain solely in French hands, he is open to discussions about offering extended nuclear protection to European partners.
“Russia has become a threat to France and Europe. To watch and do nothing would be madness,” Macron said.
The remarks mark a major shift in France’s nuclear strategy, which has traditionally been independent of NATO. The policy dates back to Charles de Gaulle’s Cold War doctrine, which sought to position France as a nuclear power outside U.S. control.
Amid growing security concerns, Macron pledged to boost military spending, though he stopped short of providing exact figures. He ruled out tax hikes, suggesting that budget reallocations would be necessary to fund the increase.
"I want to believe the U.S. will remain at our side, but Europe must be ready if that is no longer the case."
His comments reflect mounting concerns among European leaders following Donald Trump’s decision to freeze military aid to Ukraine and question NATO’s collective defence commitments.
Macron’s speech comes ahead of a crucial EU summit on defence, where European leaders will discuss how to maintain support for Ukraine and strengthen their own security measures.
France and Britain are also working on a joint peace plan for Ukraine, which could be finalised within days and presented to Washington and Moscow as a potential diplomatic solution.
The plan aims to repair relations between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy after their tense Oval Office meeting last week, where Trump berated Zelenskiy for being ungrateful for U.S. aid.
Europe’s security landscape has changed dramatically since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. With Trump’s unpredictability and fading U.S. involvement, European countries are scrambling to reassess their defence strategies.
While France’s nuclear deterrent has long been viewed as a national security asset, Macron’s willingness to extend protection to European allies signals a shift towards greater European military integration in response to Russia’s aggression and U.S. unpredictability.
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.
The 7th Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan has concluded in Russia with participants issuing a joint statement heavily hinting at a joint opposition to any foreign military infrastructure in Afghanistan.
Former FBI Director James Comey pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to criminal charges, and his lawyer said he would file a barrage of legal challenges to the first prosecution by the Justice Department against one of President Donald Trump's political enemies.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to attend a ministerial meeting in Paris on Thursday with representatives of Europe, the Arab world and other nations to discuss Gaza's post-conflict transition, according to three diplomatic sources.
Germany will grant police the power to shoot down rogue drones like those that have disrupted airports across Europe and that some European leaders have attributed to a hybrid war being waged by Russia.
Czech Republic election winner ANO hopes to conclude negotiations with two small parties on forming a new government by the beginning of November, party leader Andrej Babis said on Wednesday (8 October).
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