London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Oct 05, 2025

Macron under fire for saying France wouldn’t respond in kind if Russia launched nuclear attack on Ukraine

Macron under fire for saying France wouldn’t respond in kind if Russia launched nuclear attack on Ukraine

French president says Paris would not trigger a nuclear response if Russia launched such a strike ‘in Ukraine or in the region.’

Emmanuel Macron’s recent comments on the French response in case of a Russian nuclear attack on Ukraine have drawn fire from observers and political opponents at home.

During an interview with French TV channel France 2, the French president said on Wednesday that Paris would “evidently” not use nuclear weapons in response to a Russian nuclear attack on Ukraine.

“France has a nuclear doctrine, that is based on the vital interests of the country and which are clearly defined. These would not be at stake if there was a nuclear ballistic attack in Ukraine or in the region,” the French president said.

The French president has since been criticized for breaking the usage of remaining vague on the topic of nuclear dissuasion, at a time when Russian leader Vladimir Putin has made nuclear threats.

“[Nuclear] dissuasion’s credibility relies on not saying anything about what we would have to do,” former French President François Hollande said on FranceInfo radio, adding one needed to “say as little as possible and be prepared to do as much as possible.”

As the leader of the EU’s only nuclear power, Macron’s comments that he would not respond to a nuclear attack in Ukraine “or in the region” are unlikely to reassure EU member states belonging to NATO such as Poland, Romania or Slovakia. Article 5 of the NATO treaty states that members should come to the defense of other members in case of attack.

Putin raised the specter of a nuclear war in a major escalation last month, threatening to use “all weapon resources” at his disposal to win.

While the U.S. has remained vague on how it would respond to a Russian nuclear attack on Ukraine, it has however made it clear that Russia would face a response of conventional forces on a massive scale.

Bruno Tertrais, deputy director for the think tank Foundation for Strategic Research, questioned Macron’s “curious” decision to spell out the limits of France nuclear doctrine, and the timing of the statement.

“In my opinion, the right answer should have been: I won’t play this game … and anyway Mr. Putin must be aware that he would lose,” he tweeted.

During the interview on Wednesday, the French president said the less dissuasion was discussed “the better,” but he then went on to clarify what would happen in case of an attack against Ukraine. Asked by the France 2 journalist if France would refrain from deploying nuclear bombs in response to a Russian nuclear attack on Ukrainian soil, Macron said “evidently.”

“When I heard him speak, I almost fell of my chair,” said the conservative MP Jean-Louis Thiériot, vice president of the National Assembly’s armed forces committee.

“It’s a political mistake. One of the principles of nuclear dissuasion is that there’s an uncertainty as to what is considered a vital interest,” he said.

Thiériot believes Macron’s message may have been meant for voters at home, who are worried about France’s military support for Ukraine and the possibility of a nuclear war.

The French president did not make any statements on what France’s conventional response might be if Russia used nuclear weapons. On Monday, the G7 countries released a statement that warned that Russia would face “grave consequences” if it did.

The comments risk further undermining France’s push for strategic autonomy and a Europe that defends itself and does not rely solely on the U.S. for protection.

Comments

Oh ya 3 year ago
Yes according to NATO being honest is a bad thing. The US talks big but in all honesty have not won any war since Korea where everyone took their armies and when home in a draw, Vietnam ass kicked, desert ass kicked. Ukraine is being cleaned of NAZIS and that is a good thing

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
×